Cinematic Wallpaper not working/missing on Pixel: How to Fix

In this guide, we will list out various methods to fix the issue of Cinematic Wallpaper not working/missing on your Pixel device. Google has really upped the ante in the last year or so when it comes to Artificial Intelligence. Its devices have been blessed with tons of nifty AI tweaks and functionalities, some of which have even been adopted by other OEMs [such as the Circle to Search by Samsung]. With that said, these features followed the same trajectory as the rest of the updates- slowly in a staged manner.

While that is also acceptable up to an extent, however, even ten months later, some users have still not received the said feature. This has raised quite a few eyebrows in the tech community behind the plausible cause of this staggering delay. While the guessing game might go on, we came across a few handy workarounds that should help you fix this issue once and for all. So without further ado, let’s check them out.

Cinematic Wallpaper not working/missing on Pixel

It is recommended to try out each of the below-listed workarounds and then see which one works out for you. Follow along.

FIX 1: Using Google Photos

A nifty workaround that we stumbled upon involves taking the help of Google Photos to get his job done. Here’s how:

FIX 2: Use a Different Image

Some images might not support the Cinematic Wallpaper effect. Therefore, it is recommended that you switch over to a different image and then try applying this effect. Here’s how it could be done:

1. Long press in an empty region on the home screen and select Wallpaper and Style.
2. Then go to More Wallpapers and select a different wallpaper this time around.
3. You should now see an icon at the top right having three stars, tap on it.
4. Now enable the toggle next to Create Cinematic Wallpaper and wait for a few seconds.
5. Finally, select the location where you want to apply this wallpaper: home, lock, or both screens.

FIX 3: Switch to Default Primary Color

Beginning with Android 12, Google introduced the Material You theming design, which will automatically pick up the dominant color from the wallpaper and apply it across the OS. With Android 13 and subsequently with Android 14, we were blessed with a plethora of other colors to choose from.

However, selecting from any of these colors seems to be causing an issue or two/conflicting with this feature. Therefore, you should consider switching over to the default primary color and then check out the result.

1. To begin with, long press in an empty region on the home screen.
2. Then select Wallpaper and Style and choose the first color from the list.
3. Now, tap on the Menu icon and make sure that the first color is selected under Wallpaper Colors.

FIX 4: Delete Cinematic Wallpaper Data

Some users were able to rectify this issue after deleting the data of the Cinematic Wallpaper system app. So let’s give it a try using the below-listed steps and verify the results.

1. To begin with, head over to Settings > Apps > Show all apps.
2. Then tap on the overflow icon and select Show System Apps.
3. Select Cinematic Wallpaper and go to its Storage and Cache.
4. Then tap on Delete Data > OK in the confirmation prompt.

FIX 5: Update Android System Intelligence

You should also consider updating Android System Intelligence to its latest version. In most cases, it is quite a challenging task to do so from the Play Store. So you could download the latest APK from a trusted third-party site and then check if it fixes the issue of Cinematic Wallpaper not working/missing on your Pixel device.