James Dean revival spurs debate on raising the digital dead

A bust of actor James Dean at the Griffith Observatory in Los Angeles, California, United States, recently. — AP

LOS ANGELES: The men bringing James Dean back to life for a forthcoming film are aiming not just to give his digital likeness a role, but a whole new career.

Dean’s planned appearance in the Vietnam War movie Finding Jack, and the possibility of future parts, comes as digital de-aging and duplication of real actors has tipped from cinematic trick into common practice. And it's giving new life to old arguments about the immortality and dignity of the dead.