Andrew Garfield felt a "heavy responsibility" playing Sam Altman in Artificial.
The 43-year-old actor carried personal pressure of portraying a real-life person when playing the OpenAI CEO in Luca Guadagnino's new film, but he also found it to be a crucial opportunity to "interrogate" powerful tech leaders.
Speaking at the New York Film Festival's world premiere of Artificial, which took place at Alice Tully Hall, he said: "There’s such a heavy responsibility ... playing a live person.
"I feel a tremendous amount of compassion for what that must [be] like.
"But at the same time, the deeper responsibility, maybe, that I think we all felt is to shine [a light] to try and do some interrogation of who we are giving all of our autonomy, power, and data to. That felt like the greater the service.
"There’s a lot of research, there’s a lot of footage, there’s a lot of information, [on Altman] which is all grist for the mill, and then there’s your own imagination."
Garfield spent "two to three months" listening and watching footage of Altman in a bid to find his "version" of the character.
And his perception of Altman evolved over time, after he initially had a polished first impression of the 41-year-old entrepreneur.
He added: "I remember seeing Sam testifying to Congress for the first time, way back when, and I was like, 'This guy seems f***ing great.
"I was like, ‘He’s clear-eyed, he’s honest, he’s transparent, he’s talking about regulation ... we need more of these people in control, in power, and he’s incredibly charming, charismatic.'
"And then I, you know, like all of us, we learn more about a person."
In August, Garfield told how he was relieved when he finished work on Artificial.
He told Esquire UK: “I feel grateful to those experiences of playing those people. But I don’t love it.
"Ultimately I’m like, ‘Thank God that’s over.’ I felt that way with Sam and with Hank [from After the Hunt].
"Because I much prefer at least trying to be community-minded, a good friend. I love being a cosy guy.”
