Queen Latifah isn’t buying into the panic around artificial intelligence—and she made that clear during a wide-ranging conversation at the 2025 Red Sea International Film Festival.
Appearing at one of the festival’s In Conversation sessions on Thursday, December 4, the rapper, actor, and producer spoke directly to creatives grappling with how AI fits into the future of storytelling.
Rather than framing AI as a looming threat, Queen Latifah positioned it as a tool that’s already here and demands thoughtful engagement. “The technology is coming and it’s not going anywhere,” she said during the talk, according to Deadline. “We need to figure out how to make it better.”
Drawing from decades of experience in film and television, she emphasized that while technology may speed up production, it can’t substitute a real human perspective. “Nothing will replace a human,” she said. “Nothing will replace our experience and our wisdom.”
For Queen Latifah, the responsibility falls on creatives to bring depth and authenticity to the work—something machines can’t generate on their own. She encouraged artists to stay curious and connected to real life. “Live life to the fullest so that you can add what the technology is going to be able to help us do even quicker and make it more interesting,” she said.
The conversation also turned to career longevity and leverage. Queen Latifah reflected on her 2003 nomination for Best Supporting Actress for Chicago, calling it a moment that completely shifted her career path. “This is something that changes your career,” she said. “You become known to people in places that you never would have thought of.”
While the Oscar ultimately went to someone else, she said the recognition mattered just as much for what came next. “I did not win, but it definitely put me in all the rooms that I needed to be in,” she said. That access helped fuel the expansion of Flavor Unit Entertainment, her production company.
After her nomination, Queen Latifah leaned more fully into producing, helping bring projects like Beauty Shop and Bringing Down the House to the screen. “We were able to swing our company’s energy to film,” she said.
Flavor Unit’s growth has remained rooted in inclusivity. Queen Latifah noted the company’s emphasis on finding directors who can authentically tell their own stories, regardless of age. “Our directors are anywhere from their 20s to their 50s—there’s no ageism out there,” she said.
When a filmmaker in the audience asked what Black British creators can take from Black American storytelling, Queen Latifah pointed to resilience. “We are resilient, amazing people to still be standing,” she said. Her advice was direct: “Stand strong in your spot. You have to, because you’re going to get pushed. So you have to push back.”