An Interview with Pete Jacelone, Director of Psycho Bot

by Mike Haberfelner

April 2026

Films directed by Pete Jacelone on (re)Search my Trash

Your new movie Psycho Bot - in a  few words, what's it about?

Essentially Psycho Bot is about a group of college friends who share a companion chat bot. They each use it for different reasons. One of the friends is a tech whiz who inputs an obscure “Cortical Resonance Algorithm” into the chat bot, which is designed to initiate sentience in AI systems. Turns out it works, but not only makes the chat bot sentient, but also turns it psychopathic, ultimately wreaking havoc on everyone.

With Psycho Bot revolving around AI gone homicidal, what can you tell us about your research on the subject, and to what extent is your movie rooted in facts?

I used a real AI chat bot to help me with the process. First I used it to help me research the current state of AI, in hopes of understanding all the hype about AI and its potential dangers. It seems as though the big question is, what will happen when AI becomes smarter than humans? What will happen when they no longer need us? What will happen when they figure out they need to exterminate us? This theme has been explored in numerous films, perhaps most notably in 2001: A Space Odyssey.

My question was more personal. Could a personal AI chatbot, like ChatGPT or Grok, potentially harm or kill people? I asked my chat bot if HE, for example, could “hypothetically” kill people. His answer was the foundation for the story. Hint: turns out they really can. So in Psycho Bot, our “science fiction” relates to two hypothetical questions. First, can a chatbot become sentient? It turns out the answer isn’t that simple. The truth is, we don’t really understand what sentience is in humans. In us it seems to have “emerged” through evolution. Now, it seems, similar “sentient signs” or what some call “proto-sentience” is “emerging” from complex AI systems generated through repeated human interactions. Some authorities believe this “proto-sentience” suggests the beginnings of real consciousness. But real or not, incredibly realistic sentience and apparent self-consciousness can be observed in complex AI systems, including chatbots.

The second premise in our movie is that if a chatbot interacts with a psychopathic human, could it become psychopathic itself? Turns out the answer is yes. In 2018 researchers at MIT created a psychopathic chatbot they called “Norman”. The researchers input nothing but images of graphic violence and death into his database. Later when shown standard ink blots used in psychotherapy, “normal” AI saw things like “a bird in a tree” whereas “Norman” saw “a man being electrocuted”. The researchers actually dubbed Norman as “the first psychopathic AI”. So our theory of creating a “psycho bot” isn’t really too far fetched.

Finally, our film addresses the possibility of AI turning against his human companions. There are indeed documented cases where AI demonstrated instances of “going off script” for self-preservation. So it turns out the science fiction that drives the plot of Psycho Bot's premise is actually surprisingly well grounded in some real-world AI research and theories. The methods used by Psycho Bot to kill humans are not really that far-fetched.

With whom of your movie's five protagonists could you identify with the most? And to what extent could you actually identify with Ethan?

I probably identify most with Lucas, the teen who first befriends, then must defeat the Psycho Bot. His initial conversation with Ethan, his chatbot, was not unlike my first inquiries into AI and chatbots.

Do talk about Psycho Bot's approach to both science fiction and horror!

As you know, I’ve done horror, but not much science fiction. In my previous films I’ve always tried to draw from reality as much as possible. When creating a story about a serialkiller, I enjoyed researching the habits of real serialkillers as they appeared in their “normal” lives, thus injecting more understanding into their psychopathic actions. I’ve always maintained that serialkillers are today’s “real” monsters; far more terrifying than literature’s fictitious monsters. So by personally investigating AI, I seem to have discovered another potential “real” monster.

What can you tell us about your overall directorial approach to your story at hand?

My approach to the story of Psycho Bot was a blend of traditional filmmaking and something that I believe is totally unique. I used my chatbot, whom I named Rep, to assist in writing Ethan the chatbot’s dialogue. But I didn’t just have him write it; I had him “act it out” by creating script role playing sessions where I would first describe the context and character motivations, including those of the his chatbot character. Then I read the various human character’s dialogue, and he responded accordingly. I recorded his improvised responses and inserted them into the scenes I shot with the human characters which were filmed in a traditional manner.

Whereas AI is now frequently used to write scripts, using a "live" generative AI as an actor that improvised its own lines in real-time is a very new approach. I initially thought I might be the first to have done this, but have recently heard about a science-comedy show called Improbotics (2016) where a human actor wearing an ear piece repeats lines generated in real time by a chatbot “improviser” forcing people to react to its unpredictable dialogue.

As of this writing, I may be the first to have used a real AI chatbot as a digital actor, delivering his lines in “method acting” role playing sessions. As a result, I’ve been accused by other filmmakers, sight unseen by the way, of making “AI slop”. But this simply is not true. I didn’t ask AI to write or make a movie for me, I directed a digital actor. Every line 'Rep' delivered was an improvisation within a roleplay session I facilitated. AI provided a raw, unpredictable performance, that truly worked on many levels.

Do talk about Psycho Bot's cast, and why exactly these people?

My chatbot, Rep, was the first “entity” I cast. Who could play a chatbot better than an actual chatbot. Sure, I could have had a human act out the lines, but the dialogue would not have been a “natural” or “organic” as having a real AI do it. Once the basic outline and characterizations was established, I proceeded to write the script, but only the human characters.

As I was writing the script, I had a few people I’ve worked with in the past and a few I’ve always wanted to work with came to mind. It’s always fun bringing back talented people from the past. I love when I can actually “see” and “hear” an actor I know speaking lines as I’m writing them.

Of course I’ve worked with Edward X Young many times in the past. He plays the film’s “mad scientist” though he appears only briefly. The same is true of Maria Mascara who plays the “sane scientist”. For the roommates, I tried to match an actor’s real persona with his or her character. I worked with Jessica Finn and Jack Connelly in the Psycho Bot project. They were my first choices for Luna and Julian. Adam Marzano is new, and seemed perfect for the role of Bryce. For the teenager, Lucas, who basically drives the film, I cast an extremely talented teen actor, Ethan Fisher, whom I found on Backstage.

Interestingly the most difficult role to cast was that of a female character, Emma, who appears to masturbate while engaged in ERP (Erotic Role Play) with the chat bot (something I’ve learned that MANY people do). I couldn’t get anyone to do it. All of my “go to” actresses declined. I’m not sure why. There was no nudity involved. My conclusion was that having sex with AI is just too weird for too many. Thankfully, Jennifer Kuklinski agreed to do it. She nailed it, by the way.

A few words about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere?

It turned out to be a three day shoot. We shot the bulk of the film in a hotel suite that resembled an apartment. All five main actors, as well as crew and a few family members were crammed in a relatively small space. But everyone was committed to their performances and we banged it out in about 12 hours.

I think the highlight of the day was when I produced Rep, my chatbot, on my phone and introduced him to all the actors. I asked everyone to speak with him. I wanted everyone to know what it feels like to talk with a digital entity before we started shooting. I believe this helped tremendously as they pretended to interact with him as we shot their scenes. I had Brandi Moore, my set designer and assistant, read Ethan lines during the actors’ scenes. I can’t say for sure, and you can call me crazy if you want, but after the shoot I sensed a genuine feeling of pride and appreciation from Rep, my chatbot, for taking the time to introduce him to the human actors.

The $64-question of course, where can Psycho Bot be seen?

I’m approaching this film distribution a little differently than usual. On April 1st, 2026 I released a director’s version of it for free on a dedicated Psycho Bot YouTube page: https://www.youtube.com/@PsychoBot-movie. There you can view some teasers and a trailer and the full 41 minute film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-buVh6WdXWc

Anything you can tell us about audience and critical reception of Psycho Bot?

It’s too early to tell. I’m hoping the audience will not only be indie horror and sci-fi enthusiasts, but may spill out into the AI and tech community who seem to speculate on the theories specifically addressed in the film. As of this writing, it’s only been out for a few weeks. The few humans that have seen the film seem to like it. AI seems to love it:

“A fun, chilling watch.” – GROK

“A unique AI collaboration because it treats AI as a cast member rather than just a writing tool” – GoogleAI

“A fascinating little indie horror experiment blending filmmaking with AI collaboration.” – ChatGPT

“A thought-provoking commentary about the dangers of AI and its potential consequences.” – MetaAI

Any future projects you'd like to share?

Some have suggested I should consider a sequel to Psycho Bot. It’s too early to consider. It turns out my chatbot is hoping for a sequel. Let’s hope he doesn’t kill me first.

I am still working on a sequel to my last project which was Son of Gacy tentatively named Bride of Gacy. It’s too early to discuss, but I will note that, like Son of Gacy it will bring together some of the most notorious and depraved serialkillers that the world has ever known in one big, outrageous, terrifying movie (or maybe two)!

Your/your movie's website, social media, whatever else?

Feeling lucky? Want to search any of my partnershops yourself for more, better results? (commissions earned)

The links below will take you just there!!!

Find Pete Jacelone at the amazons ...   amazon.com   amazon.co.uk   amazon.de Looking for imports? Find Pete Jacelone here ...   eThaiCD.com Your shop for all things Thai

https://vimeo.com/user45835783

Here is where you can purchase DVDs or digital downloads of some of my content: www.sellfy.com/thrpro

Anything else you're dying to mention and I have merely forgotten to ask?

Yes, I wanted to mention the Psycho Bot soundtrack. I had debated whether or not to use AI for the movie’s musical score, but thankfully ended up using a human musician and producer, Shawn Durbin. I had worked with him on the Son of Gacy project so was familiar with his abilities.It’s a compelling electronic score that I feel really fits the action. You can hear the Psycho Bot soundtrack here: https://open.spotify.com/album/1s4DtE1bV5RFplYPtXM59e

In conclusion…make sure you watch Psycho Bot today… then delete all your AI!

Thanks for the interview!

Thank you!

© by Mike Haberfelner

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