10 Movie Innovations That Happened Earlier Than You Think
5. CGI Nudity - Machete (2010)
Replacing a stunt double's face in post-production to ensure an actor's safety is one thing, but over the last decade it's also become increasingly common for studios to use CGI to place modest performers in nude scenes they otherwise wouldn't be comfortable with.
The most famous example is unquestionably Lena Headey's extremely impressive CGI nudity in Game of Thrones' fifth season finale, but digital body doubles were also used for both Olivia Wilde and Leslie Mann in the 2011 comedy The Change-Up, and allegedly many other productions we don't even know about.
The earliest major instance of CGI nudity, however, came in 2010's Machete, in a scene where Jessica Alba appears to stand in the shower in the nude. Instead, Alba actually wore white underwear to shoot the scene, which was then painted out in post-production.
Aside from a slight blur around the breast area, it's completely convincing. And with CGI becoming ever more impressively photoreal with each passing day, don't be surprised if more actors defer to digital doubles in the future.