OpenAI is trying to introduce Sora to Hollywood before the technology reaches a wider market. The company has held recent meetings with major studios, using private demonstrations to explain what the video generation model can do and to address concerns about its effect on film and television work.
The conversations put Sora in front of executives from Paramount, Universal, and Warner Bros Discovery at a moment when artificial intelligence is already a sensitive issue across the entertainment business. The model can generate detailed videos from simple written prompts, but it has not been widely released and still has visible technical limits.
What OpenAI showed Hollywood
Chief Executive Sam Altman and Chief Operating Officer Brad Lightcap gave presentations to executives from the film industry giants, according to multiple people with knowledge of the meetings. Their goal was to show Sora directly to the studios and collect feedback from the people most likely to understand how the tool could fit into production.
Sora first drew major attention after OpenAI published a selection of videos produced by the model last month. Those clips spread quickly online and started a broader debate about what text-to-video systems could mean for creative industries.
The basic promise is simple: a user writes a prompt, and the system generates a video. For studios, that immediately raises practical questions about cost, speed, experimentation, and what kinds of visual work might be changed if this technology improves.
Why the timing matters
The Hollywood meetings come after last year’s monthslong strikes, when the Writers Guild of America and the Screen Actors Guild secured groundbreaking protections from AI in their contracts. That context matters because Sora is not arriving in a neutral environment. It is entering an industry where workers, studios, and unions are already negotiating the role of AI in creative labor.
This year, contract negotiations are underway with the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, and AI is again expected to be a hot-button issue. That means any studio interest in Sora or similar AI products will be viewed through a labor lens as well as a technology lens.
OpenAI appears to be aware of that sensitivity. One person close to OpenAI said the company has been previewing the model in a “very controlled manner” to “industries that are likely to be impacted first.”
Interest without partnerships
People involved in the talks said some studios appeared open to using Sora in future filmmaking or TV production. At the same time, licensing and partnerships have not yet been discussed, according to people involved in the talks.
One studio executive framed the meetings as demonstrations rather than dealmaking:
“There have been no meetings with OpenAI about partnerships,” one studio executive said. “They’ve done demos, just like Apple has been demo-ing the Vision Pro [mixed-reality headset]. They’re trying to get people excited.”
That distinction is important. The demos show that studios are willing to look closely at Sora, but they do not show that the industry has agreed on how to use it. For now, the technology is being evaluated, not adopted through announced commercial arrangements.
Those who watched the demonstrations said Sora or similar AI products could save time and money on production. They also said the technology still needs further development. In other words, the early reaction combines curiosity with caution.
What Sora can and cannot do yet
OpenAI has not widely released Sora. The company has also held off announcing a launch date or explaining the circumstances under which the model will become available.
According to one person with knowledge of its strategy, OpenAI is still deciding how to commercialize the technology. Another person said safety steps remain before the company considers putting Sora into a product.
The model is also still being improved. At present, Sora can only make videos under one minute in length. Its outputs can also contain errors, including glass bouncing off the floor instead of shattering or extra limbs appearing on people and animals.
Those limitations matter for professional production. A tool that can create striking short clips may still require careful review, correction, or additional work before it can be used reliably in film or TV workflows.
The competitive landscape
OpenAI is not the only company pursuing text-to-video generation. Sora is expected to compete with available text-to-video services from start-ups including Runway, Pika, and Stability AI. Those services already offer commercial uses for content.
Earlier this week, OpenAI released new Sora videos generated by a number of visual artists and directors, including short films and their impressions of the technology. That move placed creative users closer to the center of the rollout, even as broader availability remains unresolved.
Media analyst Claire Enders described the level of attention around the model in strong terms:
“Sora is causing enormous excitement,” said media analyst Claire Enders. “There is a sense it is going to revolutionize the making of movies and bring down the cost of production and reduce the demand for [computer-generated imagery] very strongly.”
Enders also said the movie industry’s response has been broadly optimistic because Sora is “seen completely as a cost-saving element, rather than impacting the creative ethos of storytelling.”
That optimism does not settle the debate. It does show why OpenAI is speaking directly with studios before a wider launch. Sora sits at the intersection of creative production, labor negotiations, commercial strategy, and safety review. Hollywood is interested, but the most important decisions about access, use, and safeguards are still ahead.
OpenAI declined to comment.