SAG-AFTRA, the actors union, is actually about to go on strike for partly this very reason. Turns out unless you’re already very famous, boilerplate contract clauses claiming to own your image and likeness in perpetuity and forever outside of the specific project you are working on is a pretty bad deal!

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/act...

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/sag...

> use their image and voice for a role in a movie without ever actually being on camera.

The upside to this is that tech might be able to fix up some actors.

Who will get the Oscar?

Or 20 years from now… “would you like 45 year old Tom Cruise in your movie? No problem, just pay his estate $20M.”

Also, talent agencies have been paying for 3d scans of their top talent for years, just to have banked in case anyone should need it. I would guess that all the A list actors plan on getting scanned every 5 years so they can be in a movie at any age.

I don't see why existing actors would play into the picture at all. By that time there will be famous AI actors. And you can license the model for $99 per film!

Is Shrek a famous AI actor?

The next step is where the real money will be made: completely generated actors.

And I see two scenarios too:

1. You can pay the studio (?) some semi-trivial amount for the use of a completely generated AI actor that perfectly fits the Director's vision for the role.

2. You get legal knock-off actors. Sure, it's $20 MM to use Tom Cruise, but for only $1 MM you can use AI-generated Thom Ruse, who looks exactly like Tom Cruise, but just slightly different enough to be legally considered his own IP.

Remember S1m0ne? https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0258153/

This is the plot of “The Congress” with Robin Wright as herself.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1821641/

Until it is literal weekend at bernies.

Wonder how long it will be until entire actors (voice, image, movement, etc) are commonly generated entirely?

Like (virtual) Japanese and Korean music idols, but for tv and movie actors.

• https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-63827838