A survey by National Research Group, run with TheWrap, suggests audiences are far from sold on synthetic performers. 56% of respondents said AI actors will never be as good as human ones, while 7% thought they already are. NRG was set to present the findings at its AI and the Future of Entertainment conference.
The unease goes beyond actors. Most people found fully synthetic performers and AI recreations of dead celebrities' voices unsettling, and close to three in five said a studio releasing a film scripted from scratch by AI would be unacceptable. Views on AI in general were more mixed: for every content type the largest group said AI involvement would make no difference, though albums and podcasts drew the most negative reactions.
The findings arrive as the Tilly Norwood controversy keeps synthetic actors in the news and SAG-AFTRA, unable to ban them, pushes for a fee each time one is used. TheWrap notes that most of Hollywood's AI use is quieter post-production work such as editing, colour and dubbing, citing Netflix's deal of up to $600 million for Ben Affleck's InterPositive. NRG's advice to studios is to be open about how and why they use AI.
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