What is the Uncanny Valley — Explaining the Phenomenon

Uncanny Valley Explained

First, let’s define uncanny valley

Since the dawn of time, man has sought to recreate “reality” through art and technology. However, few can play God without making a monster. Consider Frankenstein for example: Victor (the doctor) dreamed of replicating a human, but created something uncanny instead.

Frankenstein was subtitled “The Modern Prometheus,” in reference to the myth of the eponymous titan who gave fire (the power of the gods) to humanity. 

With that power in hand, humanity has strived to create perfect verisimilitude, AKA the appearance of “real.” 

We’ve seen this pursuit in the visual arts, through styles such as naturalism, realism, and photorealism.

We’ve also seen it in the fields of robotics and computer-intelligence; in which scientists have worked to create hardware and software indistinguishable from humans. 

These aesthetic and practical concerns largely built the background of the uncanny valley. But what is uncanny valley? Let’s answer that question with an uncanny valley definition.

To quote Steve Buscemi from Spy Kids 2 “do you think God stays in heaven because he, too, lives in fear of what he’s created?”

Uncanny Valley Meaning Explained

What does uncanny valley mean?

Uncanny valley means the unsettled feeling a human experiences when observing a human-like object that is eerily “unreal.” This phenomenon can be found in dolls, robots, digital media, etc.; essentially anything that makes you cringe and say “that’s trying to be real but doing a very bad job.” 

Mori notes that although bunraku puppets are perhaps not as lifelike as some robots, our affinity towards them is much greater. That’s because the medium through which they are observed connotes a sense of artificiality; the uncanny valley largely relies on the intent to appear human.

Masahiro Mori noted: “I have noticed that, in climbing toward the goal of making robots appear human, our affinity for them increases until we come to a valley, which I call the uncanny valley.”

There’s no denying that some robots are downright scary. Not just because they can take our jobs, but because they look like humans; yet clearly aren’t. 

Even when they have skeletons, skin, and hair, their movements and mannerisms are usually too mechanical. Humans act in ways robots (without proper programming) never would. We scratch our itches, blink to get dust out of our eyes, and take deep breaths to calm ourselves down. When robots don’t do these things, we get freaked out. In other words, robots may look human, but they usually don’t act like it. 

Of course, the times are a changin: the robot Ameca performs many humanlike mannerisms. The robot “Sophia” was granted Saudi Arabian citizenship in 2017, and gave a college commencement address in 2024.  

One might suppose that the mere existence of a humanoid robot is uncanny. But these machines are only getting more and more intelligent; which the skeptic in us all should consider scary. 

The Uncanny Valley Definition Explained

The scariest uncanny valley examples

The early days of CGI produced some glaring uncanny valley examples, such as Robert Zemeckis’ Beowulf and The Polar Express. The graphics of these films were cutting edge… for their time. But even then, there was something uncanny about their design.

It’s incredibly difficult to render lifelike imagery, even with the most powerful technology. That’s why some CGI artists have instead attempted to blend the “real” with the fantastic. It’s been done well… like in Pirates of the Caribbean – and it’s been done not so well… like in Cats.

Davy Jones in Pirates isn’t uncanny because he’s not meant to appear human. He’s meant to appear human-like, but he’s more monster than man. There’s a cohesiveness to the character design that stops short of the uncanny valley. 

Conversely, Cats takes digital humans, puts cat fur and whiskers on them, and calls it a day. The lack of purposeful intent makes their appearance unsettling. 

Cats received poor reviews largely because its oddly anthropomorphic felines unsettled audiences.

Recent developments in technology are bringing us towards a world in which it is becoming difficult to determine what, and isn’t, “real.” 

Computer graphics engines, such as Epic’s UE5, utilize path-tracing to render photorealistic worlds in “real” time.

MetaHuman, “a realistic person creator,” blurs the line between “real” and fake human faces.

The demo The Matrix Awakens includes both technologies; to quote a digital Keanu Reeves “how do we know what is real?”

The Matrix itself is a symbol for the conflict between the actual and virtual, which is a philosophical quandary that’s been pondered by the likes of Plato, Martin Heidegger, and Gilles Deleuze (just to name a few). 

It’s common for us to assume that our latest and greatest developments in technology are changing our understanding of “reality.” But is that really the case?

Mori wrote in 1970 for “Recently, owing to great advances in fabrication technology, we cannot distinguish at a glance a prosthetic hand from a “real” one. Some models simulate wrinkles, veins, fingernails, and even fingerprints.”

So, we’re left to wonder if our present situation is really that unique. Are we truly on the precipice of a metaphysical sinkhole? Prosthetics are physical; digital media is, well, digital.

There’s no denying the effects of something that appears to be “real.” Deep fakes, which are AI-created photographs, videos, or voice recordings that appear “real,” could fundamentally change the landscape of crime and politics. How can we trust the authenticity of digital media when it can so easily (and instantaneously) be created by artificial intelligence?

Jordan Peele issued a stern warning on the dangers of blindly believing internet content in a deep fake in which his voice was used alongside computer generated imagery of former President Barack Obama’s face.

Perhaps the most uncanny thing about human-like objects is not the valley where they start to become lifelike, yet clearly “unreal,” but rather the sinkhole where they become indistinguishable from the “real.” Of course, that requires a concrete understanding of what constitutes “reality,” which is something the greatest minds of history have struggled to explain.

Moreso, some people willingly choose to ignore the “real” in favor of the artificial; evidence in the rising number of people forsaking dating for AI chatbots. Uncanny indeed.

The uncanny valley brushes up against our collective understanding of “reality;” for that reason alone it should be studied. But it also tells us something essential about ourselves: what we consider natural and unnatural, what we consider “real” and “unreal.” Next time you see a human-like object that appears frighteningly out of place, consider Slavoj Zizek’s quote “beyond the fiction of reality, there is the reality of the fiction.”

Up Next

What is Body Horror?

Body horror is right at home in the uncanny valley… but what is body horror? In our next article, we define body horror alongside examples from The Fly, An American Werewolf in London, and more. By the end, you’ll know what body horror is, and its biggest progenitors. 

Up Next: Inside the Best Body Horror Movies →