Will Smith, Spaghetti & A Slice Of AI Future: How GenAI Videos Went From Laughable To Legendary

When the internet first saw a surreal video of Will Smith clumsily devouring spaghetti, it was hard not to laugh — and harder still to take generative AI video models seriously. That infamous clip, which quickly went viral, became a go-to punchline in presentations and panel discussions, symbolising the awkward infancy of AI-generated visuals.

But fast-forward just 18 months, and the tone around GenAI video has changed dramatically.

From Meme Material to Hyperrealism

That spaghetti-slurping moment wasn’t just a quirky internet blip — it was a marker of how far AI had to go. And now, looking at the leaps these models have made, it’s clear that we’ve entered a new era.

"Voila, 18 months (or so) later and the current video models do a pretty good job of making it super realistic," says one industry observer on LinkedIn.

The transformation from warped facial movements and surreal distortions to photorealistic renderings has been staggering — and rapid.

"18 months!! That speed of improvement is absolutely mind-blowing, what will happen in another 18 months?" the same expert asks. It’s a valid question — if this is where we are now, where could AI-generated video be by 2026?

A Grim Warning From a Legendary Animator

While today's AI content ranges from jaw-droppingly impressive to eerily uncanny, not everyone is applauding. Studio Ghibli’s revered co-founder Hayao Miyazaki offered a blistering take on AI art nearly a decade ago — and his words still echo today.

"I strongly feel that this is an insult to life itself," Miyazaki said in a 2016 NHK documentary, reacting to an AI-generated animation shown to him by a group of tech designers. The disturbing footage featured a disfigured creature dragging itself across the floor in an unnaturally grotesque fashion. The team enthusiastically pitched it as inspiration for a zombie video game.

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But Miyazaki, known for breathing soulful humanity into hand-drawn characters, was appalled. "It doesn’t feel any pain and has no concept of protecting its head. It uses its head like a leg," the presenter explained, attempting to justify the horror. Yet for Miyazaki, the lack of empathy or humanity was exactly the problem.

Internet's New Obsession: AI Meets Ghibli Aesthetic

Ironically, in a full-circle moment, generative AI tools today are now flooding social feeds with Ghibli-inspired animations. Prompted by OpenAI’s latest models, the internet is currently obsessed with recreating Ghibli-style visuals — dreamy backdrops, expressive characters, and nostalgic tones — all through text-to-video platforms.

What was once dismissed as crude and creepy has evolved into something oddly beautiful — even viral. But as Miyazaki’s critique reminds us, rapid progress still invites deep ethical questions. Just because GenAI can replicate art doesn’t mean it understands the humanity behind it.

So the next time you chuckle at an AI-generated video, remember — it might just be a stepping stone on a path far more profound than spaghetti and slapstick.

technology