# Rogue One CGI: minor spoilers, I suppose **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 19, 2017, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548 "2017-03-19T16:41:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2017, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/1 "2017-03-19T16:41:00Z")
. . . . . . . . . . . . I thought the CGI of Peter Cushing was good, but it still looked obviously CGI to me. But I already knew he was CGI before I watched the movie, and maybe that primed me to see imperfections that were either not otherwise noticeable, or perhaps not even there at all. I was wondering if someone went into the film not knowing he was CGI, would they notice? Did anybody here (with decent eyesight) not previously know it was CGI? Did you notice the CGI anyway, or not? ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2017, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/2 "2017-03-19T16:45:48Z")
My wife had no idea that he was CGI. ---
**Author:** ![Tarwater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9de0a6/32.png) [@Tarwater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tarwater)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2017, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/3 "2017-03-19T17:47:26Z")
> [@beowulff](#): > > My wife had no idea that he was CGI. Similar thing with my wife. Near the end of the movie, though, she leaned over and asked why he looked so weird. It took her the better part of the movie to realize he was CGI. On the other hand, I did not know that Tarkin was going to be in the movie, but I was familiar with the character. So even though I knew he’d have to be CGI, I was a little knocked off center when he first appeared on screen. I was genuinely confused for a split second. ---
**Author:** ![mikecurtis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mikecurtis/32/3284_2.png) [@mikecurtis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mikecurtis)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2017, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/4 "2017-03-19T18:12:29Z")
i, too, was unaware he would be in the movie, and when he came on screen, looked a little off. i couldnt remember if he was still alive. the second time he appeared i thought to myself it must be fake! mc ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2017, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/5 "2017-03-19T18:22:05Z")
Our employer had a private showing on opening day and a co-worker (50 something male) asked me how I liked it as we were walking out. I told him it was good but the Leia and Tarkin CGI looked a bit ‘off’. He had no idea that the Tarkin character was CGI of a dead actor. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2017, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/6 "2017-03-19T18:42:23Z")
I didn’t notice. To the extent I thought about it at all (which wasn’t much), I assumed that they had just found a younger lookalike actor, like they did with Mon Mothma. His presence on screen was a bit disturbing, but that didn’t ring any alarms for me, because his character is _supposed_ to be disturbing. Again, to the extent that I noticed it, I just chalked it up to good acting. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2017, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/7 "2017-03-19T19:18:11Z")
I thought the CGI Tarkin was very good; Leia less so. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2017, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/8 "2017-03-19T20:15:22Z")
Everyone I’ve talked to that had no clue who Peter Cushing or Grand Moff Tarkin was had absolutely no clue it was CGI. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2017, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/9 "2017-03-19T20:18:00Z")
I was pretty impressed with the voice imitator as well. I knew he was fake, obviously. Seriously, though, the voice actor they used really got his voice down. It’s almost equally impressive to the digital effect. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2017, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/10 "2017-03-19T21:26:20Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > His presence on screen was a bit disturbing, but that didn’t ring any alarms for me, because his character is _supposed_ to be disturbing. Never thought about “uncanny valley” as a possibly useful cinematic tool before. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2017, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/11 "2017-03-19T23:03:52Z")
> [@Revtim](#): > > Never thought about “uncanny valley” as a possibly useful cinematic tool before. I thought digitally de-aged Jeff Bridges in the Tron sequel also benefited from the effect being not quite there, but of course, the “younger” Bridges in that movie was supposed to be a defective digital copy. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2017, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/12 "2017-03-20T00:19:49Z")
I’ve heard that there was some classic zombie movie or another (or maybe an alien-possession movie; same difference) where the actors all walked around backwards and they reversed the direction of the film, specifically to make things look not quite right. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Pork-Chop\_Express](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@The\_Pork-Chop\_Express](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Pork-Chop_Express)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2017, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/13 "2017-03-20T00:47:26Z")
Thought Tarkin was rubbery and Leia was awful. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2017, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/14 "2017-03-20T14:04:57Z")
> [@The\_Pork-Chop\_Express](#): > > Thought Tarkin was rubbery and Leia was awful. Yeah, I was disappointed in both. Uncanny Valley for sure. I would rather they’d recast Tarkin and just showed Leia from behind (I guess they could still use the Carrie Fisher soundbite “Hope”). It’d be obvious who she was. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2017, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/15 "2017-03-20T15:11:22Z")
I wasn’t prewarned. Because of the varying quality of the replacement Tarkin, I spent too much time on my first viewing trying to figure out if he was played by a different actor, was made with old Peter Cushing footage skillfully meshed, pure cgi, or combinations. Rather than just enjoy the movie, like I did the second time. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2017, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/16 "2017-03-20T15:29:00Z")
I didn’t remember that he was dead, so I wasn’t sure if he played himself and was digitally re-touched, or they got a lookalike to play him (and possibly did some retouching as well). Having a standin completely replaced by CGI didn’t cross my mind. If I hadn’t known that he had to have been pretty old, I might not have noticed any retouching at all. Leia, on the other hand, was pretty obvious, but I knew she was dead. ---
**Author:** ![TimeWinder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bcef8e/32.png) [@TimeWinder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TimeWinder)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2017, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/17 "2017-03-20T15:30:49Z")
> [@Ludovic](#): > > Leia, on the other hand, was pretty obvious, but I knew she was dead. She wasn’t dead at the time the movie was filmed, and I think it was actually Carrie Fisher in the scene (although with her face replaced with a younger version). Supposedly she’s in the next Star Wars; too – the scenes were all shot before her death. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2017, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/18 "2017-03-20T16:05:25Z")
> [@TimeWinder](#): > > She wasn’t dead at the time the movie was filmed, and I think it was actually Carrie Fisher in the scene (although with her face replaced with a younger version). Supposedly she’s in the next Star Wars; too – the scenes were all shot before her death. You’re correct that Carrie Fisher was alive when Rogue One was filmed (and released), but [Ingvild Deila](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm6488665/?ref_=ttfc_fc_cl_t24) played Leia in Rogue One, though obviously they CGI’d a young Carrie Fisher’s face over hers. And yes, they announced that she’s completed filming her scenes for the next movie before her death. ---
**Author:** ![Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a183cd/32.png) [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barkis_is_Willin)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2017, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/19 "2017-03-20T16:30:27Z")
I didn’t know there would be a CGI Peter Cushing when I went into the movie, however, I immediately identified him as CGI. And I did find it slightly jarring, but didn’t distract much. It looked OK, and if you just saw a still image, he probably looks great. But I’ve never seen a CGI character that looks natural when talking. ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [March 20, 2017, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548/20 "2017-03-20T16:42:22Z")
It was a very good rendering of Peter Cushing, but it still looked like he was pulled right out of a video game. A really, really well made video game, but a video game nonetheless. Had they avoided straight-on close-up shots of his face, they might have pulled it off flawlessly, but as it was, he clearly stood out as fake when among the real actors. His movements were the worst part; much too smooth. He seemed like he was floating. Carrie Fischer at the end was better, but there was still something about her that was a _little_ bit off. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/rogue-one-cgi-minor-spoilers-i-suppose/782548.md?page=2)