In a candid moment on the Variety Awards Circuit Podcast, Emily Blunt revealed her deep unease about the rapid progress of AI in the acting world. Upon being shown a news report about Tilly Norwood, an AI-generated actress created by the studio Xicoia, Blunt did not hold back her feelings. “Does it disappoint me? I don’t know how to quite answer it, other than to say how terrifying this is,” she admitted.
Visibly stunned by an image of Tilly, Blunt exclaimed, “No, are you serious? That’s an AI? Good Lord, we’re screwed. That is really, really scary.” She directly addressed Hollywood agencies with a plea: “Please stop. Please stop taking away our human connection.”
When the podcast host mentioned that Tilly’s creators aim to make her the next Scarlett Johansson, Blunt’s response was sharp and to the point: “but we have Scarlett Johansson.”
Tilly Norwood, the brainchild of AI talent studio Xicoia, has been making waves online with her debut. While many viewers are calling for the experiment to cease, the studio behind her is pushing forward, with other similar projects anticipated. Tilly’s own social media captions highlight her versatility, stating, “In 20 seconds I fought monsters, fled explosions, sold you a car, and nearly won an Oscar. All in a day’s work… literally! Find yourself an actress who can do it all.”
However, the concept isn’t universally embraced. Critics have voiced their disapproval, with comments like, “Not real. Should be reported for being AI. You’ve never even taken an acting class LOL,” and “Much like the process creating these generic slip clips with no audio, this “virtual performer” lack a soul. Show me an actual scene that impresses me with Filmmaking and ‘performance’ all AI generated not carrots dangled by a tech company to get funding for vaporware.”
Meanwhile, Emily Blunt is currently gearing up for her next film, ‘The Smashing Machine’, alongside Dwayne Johnson, slated for release on October 3rd.