Artificial intelligence was once exclusive to science fiction, seen by many as an impossible future. Now, hearing the voices from our past is as simple as a search online or through AI.
AI can allow the industry to bring celebrities back to viewers’ screens, but some industry workers have mixed feelings on its utilization.
AI has had a controversial presence in the entertainment industry since its introduction in the 1950s. Recent technological advancements, however, have made AI an omnipresent reality.
In the past few years, feeds have been saturated by AI content and conversations. Its integration into mainstream tech, such as on Instagram and Google, has become commonplace. AI’s evolution into a tool used by the general public pervades our daily lives.
Even when AI was merely a product of science fiction, people wondered how it could be used to bring back the dead; however, it’s not a matter of whether technology can bring the dead onscreen, it’s a matter of whether it should.
One of the most notable uses of AI to bring someone back on screen occurred in 2019. Beloved actress Carrie Fisher was digitally brought back to life in “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” following her death three years prior. Fisher, who is known for her role as Princess Leia, appeared for only a short time in the movie. Yet to an unassuming viewer, it would appear as if she was on set with the rest of the actors.
Though Fisher's daughter, Billie Lourd, gave permission and actually stood in as her mother’s body double, other industry members have been less than willing to have their imagery used after death.
“I’ve witnessed for years how many people want to train these models to create/recreate actors who cannot consent, like Dad,” Zelda Williams, daughter of late actor Robin Williams, wrote on Instagram. “These recreations are, at their very best, a poor facsimile of greater people but, at their worst, a horrendous Frankensteinian monster, cobbled together from the worst bits of everything this industry is, instead of what it should stand for.”
Living actors have taken proactive measures to avoid the use of their likeness after death. Robert Downey Jr. has made clear his estate’s intention to sue any executive using his digital likeness posthumously. Before signing any contract, Samuel L. Jackson removes phrases like “in perpetuity to avoid the use of his image after death.
Other movie stars have celebrated AI’s technological advancements. James Earl Jones, who voiced Darth Vader in the Star Wars series, worked with Disney to create an AI replication of his voice before his death. Any future Star Wars installments can use his voice however they see fit.
Harrison Ford, who was digitally de-aged in “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” (2023), is hesitant to invest in AI.
“When it’s helpful, I’m happy to have it, and when it’s not, I’m disappointed that we’ve chosen to use it,” FordtoldCNN host Chris Wallace. “I think it’s not a question of the technology, it’s how you use it.”
AI is not the only way to bring deceased actors back onto the screen. The voice of Christopher Lee, known for his role as Saruman, will be heard in “The Lord of the Rings: The War of Rohirrim” (2024). Instead of AI, archival recordings of Lee’s voice will be used to form new lines of dialogue.
The approach was approved by Lee and confirmed by his wife before their deaths, avoiding the potential harms of AI while still bringing back the voice of a beloved actor. The filmmakers even searched for a voice actor to replicate Lee before turning to archives.
The industry is concerned about the rising use of AI and what it means for actors after death. Legal aspects aside, the moral dilemma weighs heavy on the industry, which has yet to make a unified stance for or against resurrections for the screen.
However, conversations have begun regarding AI usage. The Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists picketed for AI regulation during its strike in 2023. Though agreements providing some protections against AI were signed, digital replicas remain a major concern.
In September, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation requiring actor’s consent for their digital likeness to be used in life and death. The bill is set to take effect in 2025 and may have major implications for the entertainment industry centered in California.
AI has become a major part of daily life and has now become a factor in death. By bringing the deceased back onto the screen, the industry raises ethical questions actors are forced to grapple with. Returning on screen after death is seemingly uncontrollable, yet changes are being made and conversations continue about the ethics of AI in entertainment.
