While promoting his new sci-fi movie Mercy, MCU star Chris Pratt has given his thoughts on the ongoing controversy surrounding AI actress Tilly Norwood.
“[I don’t] feel like someone’s gonna replace me,” Pratt confessed to Varietyon Tuesday night. “I think that’s all bullshit.”
Hollywood Takes A Stand Against The AI Performer
Tilly Norwood has been the name on everybody’s lips since she was created by Dutch comedian Eline Van der Velden last summer. She’s a so-called “synthetic performer”; an actress whose appearance, voice, and expressions are entirely artificial.
Her introduction triggered a widespread response of panic and distaste from Hollywood, including the SAG-AFTRA union, who worried that Norwood posed an existential threat to the acting industry. Norwood may “put actors out of work, [jeopardize] performer livelihoods and [devalue] human artistry,” the union warned in an official statement.
Other noteable Hollywood stars have also condemned the existence of AI actors; in December, Leonardo DiCaprio added his two cents: “I think anything that is going to be authentically thought of as art has to come from the human being.”
Emily Blunt has also expressed her concern about the introduction of AI into the acting industry, calling performers like Tilly Norwood “really scary” and warning studios against using these tools.
Chris Pratt Isn’t Afraid Of Tilly Norwood
Pratt, however, is less convinced. “I’ve never seen [Norwood] in a movie,” he said. “I don’t know who this bitch is.”
Pratt went on to discuss how AI can be used safely and productively in the film industry, describing the technology as “an amazing tool in the right hands.” But like most of his colleagues, the MCU star doesn’t see a future for synthetic performers like Tilly Norwood.
“We are not the first or last industry to be disrupted by AI,” Pratt confessed, “[but] great filmmakers are going to make great films.”
Pratt is currently starring in Mercy, a dystopian thriller about a man who’s put on trial for the murder of his wife by an AI system and must prove his innocence in order to save his own life. The film releases in theaters across the United States on January 23.
