Why Is David Zaslav in The Wizard of Oz at Sphere?

"Playing the titular role, MSG CEO James Dolan opened The Wizard of Oz at Sphere Thursday night. Famously, the Wizard is a charlatan in every version of the text. In the books and 1939 film, he's relatively harmless. In , he's basically a fascist. But in Las Vegas, where spectacle-over-substance is kind of the whole point, the Wizard was a beneficent showman. Kind of like James Franco in Oz the Great and Powerful?"

"Yes and no. MSG, Google Cloud, Warner Bros. Discovery, and VFX studio Magnopus upscaled The Wizard of Oz to 16Kand used generative AI to fill the frame. Because there's so much more frame to fill with a near-360 screen. The film also cuts 20 minutes out of the runtime, but adds 4DX-style elements to the show, like a wind effect during the tornado scene."

"According to Google, AI was used to "enhance the film's resolution, extend backgrounds, and digitally recreate existing characters who would otherwise not appear on the same screen." So instead of how the film would cut to Dorothy, then the Scarecrow, then back to Dorothy, it now keeps everybody on the same giant frame. That's right, we're doing long-ass oners in this version of The Wizard of Oz. And AI was used to insert James Dolan and David Zaslav into the movie."

MSG staged a reimagined presentation of the 1939 MGM Wizard of Oz at Sphere, with CEO James Dolan appearing in the titular role at the premiere. The film was upscaled to 16K and generative AI was used to extend backgrounds, enhance resolution, and digitally recreate characters for a near-360 display. The runtime was shortened by about 20 minutes while adding 4DX-style effects such as wind during the tornado sequence. AI-enabled compositing kept multiple characters in a single expansive frame and was also used to insert brief digital appearances of James Dolan and David Zaslav.

Read at Vulture