The American comedian and actor Kevin Hart just released a new action-packed movie that hit Netflix on January 12th.
While the film has been getting abysmal reviews, there is one thing about that has Crypto Twitter (X) talking: A large chunk of $100 million dollar film directed by F. Gary Gray (Friday, The Italian Job, Straight Outta Compton) is dedicated to the theft of a high-value non-fungible token.
The opening scene takes place at an art auction in Venice, where the main attraction is an NFT from an anonymous digital artist called N8. “The digital artist has remained anonymous throughout his career. But today he’s here to auction off a single-edition NFT,” the auctioneer says to start the film.
The NFT mask “is comprised of 482 cameras — this mask will create the NFT. Inspired by Vincent Van Gogh, the digital art piece will be generated from a live 30-second feed. Once complete, the NFT will have captured the moment of its sale, which will include the buyer.” In other words, it’s a dynamic NFT.
After a series of “oohs” and “ahhs” from attendees, Cyrus Walker (Hart) opens the bidding at $12 million. Eventually he wins the auction for $20 million, and that is when the plot thickens.
Cyrus Walker is the leader of a band of thieves that claim to be art aficionados, and this is their first time stealing an NFT. To increase its value, they’ve hatched a complicated plot to not only steal the NFT, but to kidnap the artist as well.
Once news break that the NFT artist has been kidnapped, Walker and his team quickly sell the NFT for a whopping $89 million. The logic? The high-profile kidnapping has given the NFT an incredible back story, and now its value in the art world has increased significantly.
Although the PG-13 film may tanking on Rotten Tomatoes — with some reviewers going as far as to say it’s a “movie about greed, and was likely made because of it” — as the saying goes, “any press is good press.”
That idea is at the heart of the opening scene, and perhaps it could prove true in a larger sense for NFTs. For regardless of how good or bad the film is, it will likely be watched by millions of people around the world and could help put NFTs back into the lexicon.
NFTs in the Film Industry
Non-fungible tokens appearing in the plot of a major blockbuster movie could be a sign that NFTs are back on people’s radar, even if it’s been a tough couple of years in the space. Regardless, NFT technology has a chance to go beyond just being talked about o the big screen. In fact, many people in the film industry believe that NFTs could transform how films are made entirely.
At Rarity Sniper, we’ve written several articles about how NFTs are revolutionizing the film industry. Here are some of the top stories from the past couple of years.
- October. NFT Funded Film “The Quiet Maid” Secures Global Sales Deal
- March. NounsDAO Approves Proposal for Full-Length NFT Film
- January. NFT-Funded Film Wins $100,000 Soderbergh Award
- January. Slamdance Film Festival Embraces Blockchain Funded Project
- January. Tribeca Film Festival to Sell VIP Passes as NFTs
- January. Movieplex & Cinema Libre Partner For NFT Films
As NFTs infiltrate a myriad of sectors, the film industry looks poised to benefit from the nascent technology as well. To learn more about how NFTs in film, check out our most recent deep dive “Could NFTs Transform the Film Industry.”
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