EXCLUSIVE: As the advancement of technology continues to replace the need for human labor, American History X director Tony Kaye is undertaking a new — and maybe controversial — step in filmmaking by employing an Artificial Intelligent (A.I.) actor as the lead in his next film, 2nd Born.

Unlike Robin Williams’ 1999 film Bicentennial Man or the Steven Spielberg-directed A.I. Artificial Intelligence, Kaye is aiming to cast a real robot, who will be trained in different acting methods and techniques. The idea, which originated from Kaye and producer Sam Khoze, is to forgo the use of computer-generated effects in favor of a physical A.I. robot as an actor, who they are hoping will get SAG recognition.

2nd Born is the sequel to 1st Born, an indie comedy directed by Ali Atshani and starring Val Kilmer, Tom Berenger, Greg Grunberg, Jay Abdo, Taylor Cole, Reza Sixo Safai, William Baldwin, Denise Richards and Robert Knepper.

The pic, which will be released by Lotus Entertainment this year, centers on a young married couple, Iranian born Ben (Safai) and American Kate, whose complicated first pregnancy forces their extended family, from differing backgrounds, to find common ground for the sake of the baby

Several of the original cast members are expected to return for the next installment. 2nd Born is being produced by LIFE Entertainment with Khoze and Patrick McErlean.

Kaye’s other directorial credits include Black Water Transit and Detachment.