Tom Hanks responds to advert that used AI version of him without permission
Published on Oct 02, 2023 at 8:23 PM (UTC+4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Last updated on Oct 03, 2023 at 3:02 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Kate Bain
Tom Hanks has alleged that a dental company used an AI version of him in an advert without his permission.
Without naming the company, the 67-year-old actor wrote over a screenshot of the ad which he claims using an AI-generated image.
Posting yesterday (Sunday 1 October) to his 9.5 million followers he writes:
“BEWARE!! There’s a video out there promoting some dental plan with an AI version of me. I have nothing to do with it.”
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The star of Big has not shied away from AI in the past for his work in both the Polar Express and A Man Called Otto.
However he has expressed concerns about AI on The Adam Buxton podcast in May.
“I could be hit by a bus tomorrow and that’s it, but my performances can go on and on and on,” the Oscar Winner said.
Hanks elaborated that it’s hard to make a distinction between AI and real-life performances.
“There’ll be nothing to tell you that it’s not me and me alone and it’s going to have some degree of lifelike quality.
“That’s certainly an artistic challenge, but also a legal one,” he said.
Just ahead of the Hollywood writer’s strike he spoke about AI causing controversy in the industry.
“We saw this coming. We saw that there was going to be this ability to take zeros and ones inside a computer and turn it into a face and a character. Now that has only grown a billionfold since then, and we see it everywhere,” he said.
“I can tell you that there are discussions going on in all of the guilds, all of the agencies, and all of the legal firms to come up with the legal ramifications of my face and my voice – and everybody else’s – being our intellectual property.
“Right now if I wanted to, I could get together and pitch a series of seven movies that would star me in them in which I would be 32 years old from now until kingdom come. Anybody can now recreate themselves at any age they are by way of AI or deepfake technology.”
The Writers Guild of America board unanimously voted to affirm a deal to end the strike on Wednesday (27 September).
According to a statement from the organisation as well as increased pay and streaming residuals bonuses, there are also assurances against AI.
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All Supercar Blondie contributors undergo editorial review and fact-checking to ensure accuracy and authority in automotive journalism. After gaining her BA Hons in French and English at the University of Nottingham, Amelia embarked on a vocational diploma from the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ). This led to numerous opportunities, from interning at Vogue to being on the small team that launched Women’s Health magazine in the UK, which was named the PPA Consumer magazine of the year for three years running. As Health, Beauty and Fitness editor, Amelia personally received a Johnson & Johnson Award and was shortlisted for both PPA and BSME titles. Since then, Amelia has created content for numerous titles and brands, including the Telegraph, 111 Skin, Waitrose, Red magazine, Stylist, and Elle, as well as being Head of Content at Vitality and Editor in Chief at INLondon magazine. “My superpower is translating technical jargon about the mechanical workings of a supercar into a relatable story you’ll want to share with your friends after you’ve read it.” After joining the SB Media family as a senior journalist in September of 2023, Amelia’s role has evolved to see her heading up the SEO output of the editorial team. From researching the most ‘Google-able’ key terms to producing evergreen content - it’s been a time of hard work, growth, and success for the editorial team and the Supercar Blondie website. “I like to think of myself as a ‘method journalist’. In other words: I live and breathe whatever I am writing about. When writing about fitness, I trained as a personal trainer, and as a beauty editor, I completed an ‘expert’ in scent diploma with the Fragrance Foundation. “During my tenure at Supercar Blondie, however, I did something I never thought possible: I passed my driving test at the age of 36. One day I’d love to train as a mechanic to better understand what happens under the hood, too. “My sweet spot is providing readers with a ‘takeaway’ (read: something new they didn’t know before) after reading every one of my stories. While I don’t claim to be an expert in the automotive world, I know the experts and bodies in the field to rely on to provide our readers with an informative and thought-provoking story every time they visit the site.”
