Will Hollywood start signing AI-generated actors? Tilly Norwood could be the first
We were never supposed to talk about Al Pacino’s S1mone past 2002, yet here we are…Meet Tilly Norwood, an actress who is entirely built using artificial intelligence. And now she is being positioned as a hot commodity in Hollywood, with talent agents apparently clamoring to represent her…
So what makes Tilly Norwood such a draw? Other than being white and pretty (hey, that means something in Hollywood!), she has been designed “to perform with nuance, emotion, and consistency.” As such, she’s on the market in a big – and frightening – way, with Eline Van der Velden – who launched AI talent agency Xicoia and production company Particle6 – leading the way for representation.
As Van der Velden said of the industry’s willingness to embrace AI creations such as Tilly Norwood, “We were in a lot of boardrooms around February time, and everyone was like, ‘No, this is nothing. It’s not going to happen’. Then, by May, people were like, ‘We need to do something with you guys.’ When we first launched Tilly, people were like, ‘What’s that?’, and now we’re going to be announcing which agency is going to be representing her in the next few months.”
As you can imagine, the idea hasn’t exactly been universally praised by everyone in the business, which has prompted Van der Velden to respond:
Tilly Norwood was built using over 10 different AI tools, including ChatGPT and Runway, designed, the combination of which is meant to allow Xicoia to create AI performers who could revolutionize the way artificial intelligence is used in the business. As reported by Deadline, those like Tilly Norwood have distinct voices and personalities, and also have the ability to adapt instantly to change moods and tones depending on the audience. Van der Velden added, “With Xicoia, we’re creating the first studio where AI-driven talent isn’t just a gimmick – it’s living, performing IP with depth humor and narrative arcs. We believe the next generation of cultural icons will be synthetic – stars that never tire, never age and can interact with fans. But just like the best entertainment companies, the key isn’t the technology – it’s the storytelling and people behind those stories.”
This all leaves us with one question: Huh?! Is this truly the way the industry would want to go, relying on creations like Tilly Norwood, someone who is so clearly not real? Sure, technology will advance, but right now this is what’s being pitched. If you take a look at images on Tilly Norwood’s official website, it’s covered in images riddled with tells, from nonsensical text to deformed limbs. That said, sadly, too many will take a look and say, “Who’s the babe?!”
We’ve seen studios work to make full features with AI, but to now hear that talent agencies are expressing interest in hiring them is downright idiotic and would set a precedent there’s no coming back from. The optimist in me thinks this will be a disaster that doesn’t actually get embraced by Hollywood and that if any agent does pick up Tilly Norwood, it will be a low-level one looking for some PR, but at this rate and with so many major names in the business embracing AI, anything goes.
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