Case-ID: 12759603: Memory Leak in UIViewControllerRepresentable and VideoPlayer

Dear Developers and DTS team,

This is writing to seek your expert guidance on a persistent memory leak issue I've discovered while implementing video playback in a SwiftUI application.

Environment Details:

• iOS 17+, Swift (SwiftUI, AVKit), Xcode 16.2
• Target Devices:
  • iPhone 15 Pro (iOS 18.3.2)
  • iPhone 16 Plus (iOS 18.3.2)

Detailed Issue Description: I am experiencing consistent memory leaks when using UIViewControllerRepresentable with AVPlayerViewController for FullscreenVideoPlayer and native VideoPlayer during video playback termination.

Code Context: I have implemented the following approaches:

• Added static func dismantleUIViewController(: coordinator:)
• Included deinit in Coordinator
• Utilized both UIViewControllerRepresentable and native VideoPlayer

/// A custom AVPlayer integrated with AVPlayerViewController for fullscreen video playback.
///
/// - Parameters:
///   - videoURL: The URL of the video to be played.
struct FullscreenVideoPlayer: UIViewControllerRepresentable {
    // @Binding something for controlling fullscreen
    
    let videoURL: URL?
 
    func makeUIViewController(context: Context) -> AVPlayerViewController {
        let controller = AVPlayerViewController()
        controller.delegate = context.coordinator
 
        print("AVPlayerViewController created: \(String(describing: controller))")
        
        return controller
    }
 
    /// Updates the `AVPlayerViewController` with the provided video URL and playback state.
    ///
    /// - Parameters:
    ///   - uiViewController: The `AVPlayerViewController` instance to update.
    ///   - context: The SwiftUI context for updates.
    func updateUIViewController(_ uiViewController: AVPlayerViewController, context: Context) {
        guard let videoURL else {
            print("Invalid videoURL")
            return
        }
        
        // Initialize AVPlayer if it's not already set
        if uiViewController.player == nil || uiViewController.player?.currentItem == nil {
            uiViewController.player = AVPlayer(url: videoURL)
            print("AVPlayer updated: \(String(describing: uiViewController.player))")
        }
        
        // Handle playback state
    }
 
    func makeCoordinator() -> Coordinator {
        Coordinator(parent: self)
    }
    
    static func dismantleUIViewController(_ uiViewController: AVPlayerViewController, coordinator: Coordinator) {
        uiViewController.player?.pause()
        uiViewController.player?.replaceCurrentItem(with: nil)
        uiViewController.player = nil
        print("dismantleUIViewController called for \(String(describing: uiViewController))")
    }
}
 
extension FullscreenVideoPlayer {
    class Coordinator: NSObject, AVPlayerViewControllerDelegate {
        var parent: FullscreenVideoPlayer
        
        init(parent: FullscreenVideoPlayer) {
            self.parent = parent
        }
        
        deinit {
            print("Coordinator deinitialized")
        }
    }
}
 
struct ContentView: View {
    private let videoURL: URL? = URL(string: "https://interactive-examples.mdn.mozilla.net/media/cc0-videos/flower.mp4")
    
    var body: some View {
        NavigationStack {
            Text("My Userful View")
            
            List {
                Section("VideoPlayer") {
                    NavigationLink("FullscreenVideoPlayer") {
                        FullscreenVideoPlayer(videoURL: videoURL)
                            .frame(height: 500)
                    }
                    
                    NavigationLink("Native VideoPlayer") {
                        VideoPlayer(player: .init(url: videoURL!))
                            .frame(height: 500)
                    }
                }
            }
        }
    }
}

Reproducibility Steps:

1. Run application on target devices
2. Scenario A - FullscreenVideoPlayer:
   • Tap FullscreenVideoPlayer
   • Play video to completion
   • Repeat process 5 times
3. Scenario B - VideoPlayer:
   • Navigate back to main screen
   • Tap Video Player
   • Play video to completion
   • Repeat process 5 times

Observed Memory Leak Characteristics: Per Iteration (Debug Memory Graph):

• 4 instances of NSMutableDictionary (Storage) leaked
• 4 instances of __NSDictionaryM leaked
• 4 × 112-byte malloc blocks leaked

Cumulative Effects:

• Debug console prints: "dismantleUIViewController called for <AVPlayerViewController: 0x{String}> Coordinator deinitialized" when navigate back to main screen

• After multiple iterations, leak instances double

Specific Questions:

1. What underlying mechanisms are causing these memory leaks in UIViewControllerRepresentable and VideoPlayer?
2. What are the recommended strategies to comprehensively prevent and resolve these memory management issues?