Actors decry 'existential crisis' over AI-generated ‘synthetic’ actors

tech.hindustantimes.com:

Filmmakers have put monsters on screen for more than a century. In 2023, the real bogeyman looks just like us.

Since June, Hollywood studios and performers have debated the use of artificial intelligence in film and television. Failure to agree on terms around AI was one reason why the SAG-AFTRA union representing actors and media professionals last Friday joined the writers guild in the first simultaneous strike in 63 years.

While the two sides have negotiated over issues ranging from using images and performances as training data for AI systems to digitally altering performances in the editing room, actors are worried entirely AI-generated actors, or “metahumans,” will steal their roles.

"If it wasn't a big deal to plan on utilizing AI to replace actors, it would be a no-brainer to put in the contract and let us sleep with some peace of mind," Carly Turro, an actress who has appeared in television series like “Homeland,” said on a picket line this week. "The fact that they won't do that is terrifying when you think about the future of art and entertainment as a career."

One issue is creating synthetic performers from an amalgamation of actors' images. Studio sources said this has not happened yet, though they are aiming to reserve that right as part of the contract talks.

SAG-AFTRA's chief negotiator, Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, said AI poses an “existential crisis” for actors who worry their past, present and future work will be used to generate “synthetic performers who can take their place.”

Crabtree-Ireland said the union is not seeking an outright ban on AI, but rather that companies consult with it and get approval before casting a synthetic performer in place of an actor.

The major film and television producers say they