Much has been written on the potential for robots to replace humans in all sort of industries in the future. Now, in a blockbuster twist, the Walt Disney Co. is currently developing robots that may eventually be able to replace stuntmen in both their movies and their theme parks.

As reported by TechCrunch, one robot in development can perform complex and challenging aerial stunts consistently with no risk of death. The humanoid robots use laser guidance as well as built-in accelerometers and gyroscopes that allow them to adjust their position in midair, enabling them to perform aerial acrobatics that in some cases can put even the most talented stuntmen to shame.

Under the “Stuntronics” development program, the company is also creating robots that can also do the sorts of actions usually undertaken by a human performer. Initially it will be for its theme parks but potentially, once the technology advances, for its superhero movies as well, since Disney owns both Marvel Comics and the Star Wars franchises.

A video demonstration of a robot in flight is highly impressive, but the technology still has some way to go. Morgan Pope, an associate research scientist at Disney, told TechCrunch that the company’s robots often don’t look quite right but “when you’re flying through the air, you can have a little bit of function and you can produce a lot of stuff that looks pretty good, because of this really neat physics opportunity — you’ve got these beautiful kinds of parabolas and sine waves that just kind of fall out of rotating and spinning through the air in ways that are hard for people to predict, but that look fantastic.”

Although the use of robots in place of human performers in Disney theme parks makes sense, in the age of computer-generated imagery, using robots in movies may not be as obvious. That said, some directors prefer to minimize the use of CGI in their movies for a more authentic feel.

If the robots do eventually end up looking truly like humans, there’s every chance that unemployment queues for movie stuntmen may grow exponentially in the years ahead.

Photo: Disney