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Andrew Garfield is stepping into Silicon Valley—at least on screen. The actor has taken on the role of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman in Artificial, a new comedic drama from director Luca Guadagnino. Recent on-set clips from San Francisco have gone viral, showing Garfield in full “tech-bro” mode, complete with Altman’s signature slow, hands-in-pockets walk.
Fans were quick to react online. One Reddit user posted behind-the-scenes footage, writing, “Andrew Garfield nailed the Sam Altman walk!” Another confirmed the filming spot, captioning their video: “Got some shots of the OpenAI movie on Lombard.”
What surprised fans even more was the location. The production reportedly shot a scene right in front of Altman’s actual San Francisco residence. “What’s more interesting is they’re filming in front of his house…lol,” one person commented. Another joked, “I asked some crew if he knew about it and they basically said ‘he does now.’”
TMZ and several X (formerly Twitter) users also shared the moment, showing Garfield on the phone in grey slacks and a blazer, standing outside the recognizable property.
The casting choice immediately sparked comparisons to Garfield’s breakout role as Eduardo Saverin in The Social Network. Both films center around real-life tech figures, shifting power dynamics, and the price of innovation. One viral post read: “The concept of Andrew Garfield playing you in a movie about your life so you know you and your company are about to be disgustingly successful. Social Network pipeline studied in film classes.”
Garfield’s famous line from the 2010 classic—“I’m coming back for everything”—is now making the rounds again, cementing the parallels between the two roles.
Artificial is based on the dramatic events of 2023, when Sam Altman was briefly ousted from OpenAI before being reinstated days later. The ensemble cast includes Monica Barbaro as Mira Murati, Ike Barinholtz as Elon Musk, and Yura Borisov as Ilya Sutskever.
The film is being shot across San Francisco hotspots like Dolores Park, the Marina District, and a local Bay Area restaurant. Backed by Amazon MGM Studios, Artificial has a reported $40 million budget and is slated to release in 2026.