Actors’ union condemns AI ‘performer’ seeking representation

The US labor union representing actors and media professionals is pushing back against the introduction of "Tilly Norwood," an artificial intelligence-generated character that is reportedly seeking industry representation, saying the move threatens the livelihoods of human performers.

Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), in a statement on Tuesday, said creativity "should remain human-centered" and declared its opposition to "the replacement of human performers by synthetics."

"To be clear, 'Tilly Norwood' is not an actor; it's a character generated by a computer program that was trained on the work of countless professional performers—without permission or compensation," the union said.

"It has no life experience to draw from, no emotion and, from what we've seen, audiences aren't interested in watching computer-generated content untethered from the human experience," it added.

SAG-AFTRA said such technology "creates the problem of using stolen performances to put actors out of work, jeopardizing performer livelihoods and devaluing human artistry."

The union also warned that signatory producers are contractually obligated to notify and bargain with SAG-AFTRA before using synthetic performers.

The announcement comes as Hollywood continues to grapple with the role of AI in entertainment, following labor disputes and strikes in 2023 that highlighted concerns over digital replication and performer rights.