Tom Cruise said artificial intelligence will affect the film industry, but audiences will continue to value human performances, real-world spectacle and shared cinema experiences. Speaking at a BAFTA event in London, he urged creatives to “keep creating” and argued that theatrical releases represent a distinct art form alongside streaming.

Cruise cited the summer box office’s record $4.76 billion takings between 1 May and Labor Day as evidence of cinema’s enduring appeal. He also discussed his forthcoming film Digger, directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu, in which he plays an oil tycoon transformed by prosthetics and a fat suit; the film is due in cinemas on 2 October.