From the Spider-Man AI scandal to Masters of the Universe, one of the main defences for the use of AI has been that it was only concept art. The AI-generated visuals didn't make it into the final movies.
But concept art is still art. It appears in art books and behind-the-scenes footage pored over by fans. And if a movie becomes sufficiently iconic, it becomes a historical artifact. The recent auction of Disney art is a reminder of the artistic (and monetary) value such work can attain.
