The 'Superintelligence' star and her husband Ben Falcone, who directs the movie, have lunch with the SpaceX founder to talk about whether it's possible or not AI becomes a threat to humankind.

• Nov 26, 2020

AceShowbiz - Melissa McCarthy's recent research for her new movie has led her to horrifying enlightenment about the future of humankind. The actress and her husband Ben Falcone, who collaborated on upcoming movie "Superintelligence", have met with Elon Musk to talk about AI's possible dire threat to the world, which is also the premise of their new film.

In an interview with USA Today, the comedian revealed their meeting with Elon has left her terrified after she learned about the possible ugly truth of advanced technology. "We wanted to talk to him about, 'Is this possible?' To our surprise, and slight terror, he was like, 'It's not what if, but when.,' " she recalled their conversation.

"I walked out of there just like, 'Oh, boy!' " Melissa added of the aftermath of their lunch. She went on sharing her take on how people should use technology, "It was eye-opening to realize we are doing this dance with technology, friend and foe. It makes our lives better and worse. It's all up to how we use it, how we program it, even if it is to our own demise, which could possibly be our own fault."

Despite their intention to seek advice from Elon during their meeting, the couple decided to abandon the Tesla CEO's idea of a much darker "Superintelligence" ending with destruction and human enslavement. "I don't think he gave it enough thought," she explained in jest. "He has enough going on in his mind and his world. We just got the answers we wanted and were like, 'Thanks for the chicken lunch. We're outta here.' "

In a lighter note, Melissa revealed who ended up paying the lunch. She jokingly said, "I have a change belt and sat there counting out pennies and nickels, sliding pennies across the table, saying, 'This should cover it, Mr. Musk.' He finally said, 'I can't watch this anymore.' "

In "Superintelligence", Melissa stars as Carol Peters, a former corporate executive who finds her earnest yet unfulfilled life turned upside down when she is selected for observation by the world's first super-intelligence, an artificial intelligence that may or may not take over the world. Her husband Ben served as director, with the couple producing it alongside Rob Cowan.

The movie will be released digitally on HBO Max on November 26, forgoing a theatrical release.