OpenAI in talks to revive Sora for filmmakers, report says

OpenAI is discussing a deal that would give a startup deep access to Sora, its video-generation model, so the startup can build AI video tools for filmmakers, The Information reported on Monday, October 12. The newsletter's headline called it "OpenAI's Plan To Revive Sora." The startup was not named. Hollywood has been worried about copyright and AI video, and the talks would put Sora back into that fight months after OpenAI shut down its consumer product.

OpenAI has not announced any deal. Terms, timing and the startup's name have not been made public.

A product that was shut down

The Sora web and app experiences were discontinued on April 26, 2026, according to OpenAI's help center. The page said the Sora API would be discontinued on September 24, 2026, and that OpenAI would permanently delete users' Sora data after any final export window. OpenAI's original Sora 2 announcement page now carries a note saying that "as of April 26, 2026, the Sora product is no longer available".openai+1

OpenAI launched Sora 2 in late September 2025, along with a social iOS app. Users could create and remix clips, and a feature called "characters" let them insert their own likeness into scenes. Tech Journal, a specialist outlet, reported that OpenAI announced the closure on March 24, 2026. It said downloads had fallen from more than 3.3 million in November 2025 to about 1.1 million by February 2026. The outlet also reported that a planned $1 billion licensing deal with Disney covering more than 200 characters fell apart.openai+1

Hollywood's unresolved concerns

A version of Sora built for filmmakers would go back to OpenAI's earlier pitch to the entertainment industry. In 2025, OpenAI screened short films made with Sora at a Los Angeles theater, as reported by the Los Angeles Times. Some independent filmmakers liked being able to test ideas without big budgets. Others worried the tools could displace actors and visual effects workers. Sora's OpenAI product lead told the Times then that studio staff had to get legal approval to experiment with it because the subject was "touchy".latimes

OpenAI also worked with Tribeca Studios on a year-long program that funded filmmakers to make live-action shorts with its tools. Those films were scheduled to premiere at the 2026 Tribeca Festival.tribecafilm

Copyright has been the hardest problem. When Sora 2 launched, the app reportedly allowed copyrighted material by default unless rights holders opted out. That approach drew criticism from the Motion Picture Association. Giving a startup access to build tools for professionals could move Sora toward controlled, licensed production work and away from a mass-market social feed. It would not settle the question that frustrated studios: what the model was trained on, and who gets paid for it.