Fresh from the trailer farm we have one for a new A.I. film called Simulant.

Simulants are androids and the trailer's dialog rattles off precepts they must obey which are reminiscent of Asimov's.

Like many fictional iterations of robots which followed him, eg. Bladerunner.

Simulant's plot sounds reminiscent of Bladerunner.

A humanoid A.I.'s attempt to win over a widow's heart places it in the path of a government agent trying to stop the rise of machine consciousness.

This film might not strike many sci-fi fans as original but it brings together three well known actors from other sci-fi properties - local boy Sam Worthington (Avatar), Simu Liu (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) and Robbie Amell (Upload, Code 8, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City, The Tomorrow People).

Jordana Brewster also stars and started her film career in sci-fi alien body snatcher horror The Faculty but hasn't revisited the genre since apart from a single episode of Robot Chicken.

As in Upload, Robbie Amell appears to be playing a character technologically cheating death - his wife copying his consciousness into a simulant after a fatal car crash.

And while there are hints in the sets that this isn't a Hollywood blockbuster, the android and weapon special effects are photo-realistic.

It looks more A- than B grade.

What little dialog we're exposed to also sounds promising.

Simulant is not receiving an Australian cinematic release but will be available to buy digitally from June 2.

[ Main Image: Simulant trailer - Sam Worthington. Credit: Mongrel Media via YouTube. ]

References

Billington, Alex (March 8, 2023).Simu Liu & Sam Worthington in Trailer for A.I. Sci-Fi Thriller 'Simulant'. FirstShowing.Net.

One Media (March 9, 2023).SIMULANT Trailer (2023) Sam Worthington, Sci-Fi. YouTube.