Hollywood talent agencies may be on the verge of signing an artificial intelligence-generated actress, Tilly Norwood. The arrival of AI in Hollywood has been a big story in recent years, including it being a key issue in the 2023 actor and writers’ strikes.
ᴅᴇᴀᴅline, reporting from the Zurich Summit, has shared that Eline Van der Velden, an actor, comedian, and technologist who has launched AI talent studio Xicoia, said that she was in talks with several talent agents who are interested in singing the AI-generated Norwood. In turn, that has sparked some strong reactions from those opposed to what a move like that could mean.
During a discussion on AI developments in the entertainment industry, Van der Velden said that AI has become something that studios and other companies were beginning to accept, and a major public announcement could be coming in the near future. She was quoted:
“We were in a lot of boardrooms around February time, and everyone was like, ‘No, this is nothing. It’s not going to happen.’ Then, by May, people were like, ‘We need to do something with you guys.’ When we first launched Tilly, people were like, ‘What’s that?’, and now we’re going to be announcing which agency is going to be representing her in the next few months.”
As the news became widely known, many have shared their reactions, including many voicing their displeasure at the news on X:
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@zoerosebraynt called the news “bleak,” but was also surprised that was the best name the creators could come up for their AI-generated actress.
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Others, like @celestialdevils, are calling to cancel her.
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@briggsisgreat, meanwhile, uses a Terminator reference to express their worry.
Who Is Tilly Norwood?
Particle6 has created a website for Tilly Norwood. It says that she is an actor based in London, and includes links to Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, and Facebook profiles for Norwood. They have also created a 100% AI-generated video that features Norwood, which you can watch above:
In a LinkedIn post, Van der Velden shared that Norwood was created using 10 different tools (one of which was ChatGPT) and trained to “perform with nuance, emotion, and consistency.” Van der Velden claims that AI can slash production timelines and cut costs as budgets are shrinking. She adds that she believes audiences care about story, “not whether the star has a pulse.”
However, in the same post she does say that, “At Particle6, we believe AI won’t replace human creativity – it will amplify it. The future of entertainment isn’t human or synthetic. It’s both.”
Our Take on Tilly Norwood
It is clear that AI is going to have a place in our society moving forward. However, something like Tilly Norwood feels like a step too far. I get the use of AI as a tool, but the idea of an AI-generated actress starring in a major movie is unsettling.
Using artificial intelligence to de-age actors (something Sylvester Stallone was considering for a potential Rambo prequel) or other tweaks like that is one thing, but trying to create full performances with an AI-generated actor is a slippery slope, and against everything the actors fought for in the strikes just two years ago.
