History Main / DigitalDeaging

* ''Series/{{CSINY}}'' does this with Gary Sinise playing his character, Mac Taylor, in a 15-20 year flashback to him in Chicago right before getting out of the Marines and joining the NYPD. Much like the ''Twin Peaks'' example, CGI and lighting were used, along with sepia tones.

As you might expect, this is primarily done for de-aging an adult actor into a younger adult -- de-aging an adult into a child takes significantly more work, and technology isn't quite there yet. However, de-aging a child into a younger child is not unheard of (''Film/ItChapterTwo'' de-aged its child actors two years to appear as they did in [[Film/It2017 its prequel]]). But it's unlikely that we'll see, for example, Creator/DrewBarrymore de-aged 45 years to match how she appeared as a child actress in ''Film/ETTheExtraTerrestrial''.

As you might expect, this is primarily done for de-aging an adult actor into a younger adult -- de-aging an adult into a child takes significantly more work, and technology isn't quite there yet. However, deaging a child into a younger child is not unheard of (''Film/ItChapterTwo'' de-aged its child actors two years to appear as they did in [[Film/It2017 its prequel]]). But it's unlikely that we'll see, for example, Creator/DrewBarrymore de-aged 45 years to match how she appeared as a child actress in ''Film/ETTheExtraTerrestrial''.

As you might expect, this is primarily done for de-aging an adult actor into a younger adult -- de-aging an adult into a child takes significantly more work. However, deaging a child into a younger child is not unheard of (''Film/ItChapterTwo'' de-aged its child actors two years to appear as they did in [[Film/It2017 its prequel]]). But it's unlikely that we'll see, for example, Creator/DrewBarrymore de-aged 45 years to match how she appeared as a child actress in ''Film/ETTheExtraTerrestrial''.

For most of film history, the go-to tool for de-aging an actor has been makeup, to varying degrees of success. But modern innovations in CGI have allowed filmmakers to digitally de-age their actors, by digitally erasing wrinkles, mapping footage from the actor's youth onto the modern face, or some combination of the two. It's often a subtle variation of SerkisFolk--expect set images from films employing this technique to have actors' faces covered in plastic dots. It may also be combined with DigitalHeadSwap, placing the de-aged face on another actor entirely, usually a stunt double who can do things the older actor is no longer capable of or has the body proportions the character is supposed to have while the older actor doesn't have them anymore. It has allowed to mostly avoid the problems of FakeShemp in a number of modern works. At the moment, this is done with adult actors and recreating their still adult younger selves as the technology is not there yet for deaging an adult Creator/DrewBarrymore or Creator/DakotaFanning into their child actress bodies and voices of the respective ''Film/ETTheExtraTerrestrial'' and ''Film/IAmSam'' eras.

* ''Film/TheHobbitTheDesolationOfSmaug'' and ''Film/TheHobbitTheBattleOfTheFiveArmies'' both utilized this on Creator/OrlandoBloom's Legolas, to account for the fact that the character (being an Elf) doesn't age, but 10 real-world years had passed since the previous trilogy -- which were also set 60 years ''after'' these films.