Five years later, Taylor, now part of the ground zero cleanup crew, is recruited by General Andrews and Colonel Howell for a mission against "Alpha O", a new weapon developed by Nirmata that could destroy NOMAD.

Boarding a lunar shuttle at the Los Angeles Interplanetary Air and Space Port, Alphie forces the spacecraft to land aboard NOMAD as Andrews orders a large-scale assault on remaining AI bases.

A test shoot and location scouting was conducted that year, with Edwards using it as the opportunity to envision the film's look: "I took a camera and a 1970s anamorphic lens, we went location-scouting in Vietnam, Cambodia, Japan, Indonesia, Thailand, and Nepal.

[13] On a production budget of $80 million,[2] principal photography began in Thailand on January 17, 2022, with Greig Fraser (who was also a co-producer) and Oren Soffer as cinematographers, and COVID-19 safety precautions in place.

[15][16] Among the on-site filming locations in Thailand were Suvarnabhumi Airport, Ban Mung, Sangkhla Buri, Chiang Dao, and Sam Phan Bok.

[14] For their duties, Fraser was involved in the pre-production process before moving to working remotely due to his commitment to Dune: Part Two (2024), while Soffer, for his first major studio film, served as the main director of photography throughout the production shoot.

[11][20][21] Rather than building sets, or relying exclusively on digital methods such as greenscreens or StageCraft, the production found it was more cost effective to send a small crew to film in 80 locations around the world which came closest to matching the desired sci-fi look.

[33] A first look at the film was shown at CinemaCon on April 26, 2023, with editorial director Anthony D'Alessandro of Deadline Hollywood praising the production design, saying that it made "Blade Runner look like child's play".

[34] Edwards later explained why the title was changed, saying that it "sounded too much like a romantic comedy, and that message would confuse potential audiences who weren't familiar with the film's plot or trailer.

[41] Publicity stunts were also conducted in September 2023 when actors dressed as "AI robots" depicted in the film appeared during a National Football League game between the Los Angeles Chargers and the Miami Dolphins at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, a Major League Baseball game between the San Diego Padres and the St. Louis Cardinals at Petco Park in San Diego, and the first race of the Autotrader EchoPark Automotive 400 at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas.

[42][43][44] A book showcasing concept artwork and a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the film, written by James Mottram, was published by Insight Editions and released by Simon & Schuster on November 14, 2023.

[49] An early press and industry screening of The Creator, originally meant to have been its world premiere until being impacted by the 2023 Hollywood labor disputes, took place at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles on September 18, 2023, with props and costumes from the film on display in the lobby.

[3][4] In the United States and Canada, it was released alongside PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie, Saw X, and the wide expansion of Dumb Money, and was projected to gross $16–19 million from 3,680 theaters in its opening weekend.

Club cited the mid-teen estimates were due to it being an original film (not based on an existing IP), cast and filmmakers not being entirely household names (save for Washington and Janney), poor timing of the release in the midst of societal and governmental issues regarding generative AI's place in everyday life, and lackluster marketing and promotion due in-part to the ongoing 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes.

[63] Ben Sherlock of Screen Rant thought being released in the midst of public debates over AI was a positive for the film rather than a negative and attributed the poor performance to its Rotten Tomatoes score and the price of cinema tickets.

The website's consensus reads: "Visually stunning and packed with spectacular set pieces, The Creator serves up timely, well-acted sci-fi that satisfies in the moment even if it lacks substance.

[60] Maggie Lovitt of Collider wrote: "The script might have glaring flaws and painfully ambiguous morals, but The Creator is a truly remarkable piece of original science fiction storytelling.

"[73] Brian Truitt of USA Today described it as "a movie that makes you think about existence and the world around you, explodes your brain with cool visuals and sufficiently blows stuff up.

"[75] A.A. Dowd of IGN wrote: "As pure spectacle, The Creator is often jaw-dropping in its imagery, its relatively frugal special effects, and the detailed depth of its futuristic design.

It's shakier as drama and sci-fi..."[76] Graeme Guttmann of Screen Rant wrote: "While the film's story may feel overstuffed and its action sequences repetitive at times, The Creator's bold vision and willingness to take risks make it a more exhilarating experience than safe, mediocre blockbusters.

"[77] Tomris Laffly of TheWrap called it "a film that works better as an allegory for acceptance rather than a warning against AI", and that "even if you can't look past such glaring miscalculations, The Creator will still feel like a visually fulfilling journey that had been worth taking in the aftermath.

[79] Jake Cole of Slant praised the visual effects, writing: "The robots, which run a stylistic range from logical extrapolations of present-day models by companies like Boston Dynamics to the not-quite-perfect human simulacra of A.I.

"[80] Rodrigo Perez of The Playlist called it "A familiar mélange and pastiche of sci-fi-tropes you've seen and felt before, filmmaker Gareth Edwards' science-fiction drama, The Creator, is recognizable but, nonetheless, largely compelling.

Artificial Intelligence meets Children of Men" and wrote that "The most fundamental reason why The Creator, for all of its shortcomings and clichés, ultimately sold me on its optimism is that it succeeds as a blueprint where it fails as a movie.

"[82] David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter was mixed, calling it a "baggy, sentimental sci-fi epic," while Peter Debruge of Variety thought that it "can hardly even keep its premise straight".

[83][84] Mark Jenkins of The Washington Post wrote that the film "fails to develop the personalities and relationships that would give its central characters an affecting humanity.

"[86] Rafael Motamayor of /Film called it "visually stunning" but "a predictable and dumbed-down story that feels like Edwards doing James Cameron's Avatar in terms of presenting bold worldbuilding and sci-fi ideas, but without the emotional resonance of that giant film.

"[87] Glenn Whipp of the Los Angeles Times felt the film lacked originality, writing: "there's precious little in The Creator that feels fresh, particularly if you’ve seen one of the first two Terminator movies, watched The Last of Us or bought your kid (OK, yourself) a Baby Yoda plush toy.

"[88] Fionnuala Halligan of Screen International wrote that it "lacks the intellectual depth or ambition of the films it references - from Apocalypse Now to Blade Runner, The Terminator, Star Wars and beyond to the imagery of Kundun.

"[89] Nicolas Rapold of The New York Times criticized the film's tone, and wrote: "Edwards pushes the relatable ordinariness of the androids and hybrid "simulants", but the potential menace of A.I.