Tom Hanks has warned fans that an ad for a dental plan that appears to use his image is in fact fake and was created using artificial intelligence.
In a message posted to his 9.5 million Instagram followers, the actor said his image was used without his permission. “BEWARE!! There’s a video out there promoting some dental plan with an AI version of me. I have nothing to do with it,” Hanks wrote over a screenshot of a computer-generated image of himself from the clip.
The Oscar winner has expressed concerns in the past about the use of AI in film and TV, although he has not shied away from approving digitally altered versions of himself in film.
As a famous celebrity who has to deal with this a lot, here is an easy guide to tell real celebrities accounts from fake celebrities accounts on the Internet: Ask yourself, would it make sense for the real celebrity to promote these product on social media?
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Does it make sense for Academy Award winning character actor Tom Hanks to promote a random dental service? No, therefore, that is a fake account.
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Does it make sense for pop superstar Taylor Swift to promote her latest re-recorded albums on her social media? Yes, therefore, that’s a real account.
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Does it make sense for Academy Award nominated actress Margot Robbie to promote her latest movie on her first personal social media account in years? Yes, therefore, that’s a real account.
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Does it make sense for Matt Damon, Tom Brady, or Kim Kardashian to promote cryptocurrency on their social media despite never showing any interest in technology before? No, therefore, these are fake accounts.
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Does it make sense for Elon Musk, the richest man in the world in his 50s, to act like an immature middle schooler and post bad memes on the Internet to sell a cryptocurrency based on a dead meme? No, therefore, that’s a fake account.
This method works every time.
Does it make sense for Margot Robbie to point out what kind of accounts may be real or fake, including her own account in the example? Yes. Therefore it is a real account.
Thanks Margot!
You’re welcome, soloner. Now, would you guys help support our strike and the livelihood of the majority of actors by buying a shirt or a mug? Here’s your chance to look like a real celebrity.
http://sagaftra.org/official-sag-aftra-strike-swag-available
Really dude? You think you that this is actually Margot? Lol hats off to you, youngster
woosh 🤭
I appreciate that not only does Margot Robbie want to entertain me, she wants to educate me. True renaissance woman.
That’s another joke. The other two for FTX and EthereumMax respectively.
oh lol, I didn’t even get to Brady and Kardashian, was stumped on Damon, well played overall
People made fun of the ad and the lines he said but people also don’t understand that he didn’t write it. Crypto.com was already going to fail by the time their crazy expensive ad came out. Matt Damon on the other hand seems to be doing just fine.
He’s an actor, so I don’t think anyone actually thought he wrote anything he said on that ad, but it was an endorsement, which is more difficult to parse whether or not he actually invested in or supported it. And, probably like most people, I didn’t care enough to read in depth about it afterward.
I didn’t see anything in the article about it, but is Tom Hanks not suing these people?
Does it make sense for Elon Musk, the richest man in the world in his 50s, to act like an immature middle schooler and post bad memes on the Internet to sell a cryptocurrency based on a dead meme? No, therefore, that’s a fake account.
This actually would make sense for someone like Elon Musk.
… That’s the joke. Dogecoin.
I love that this account still exists
No way you’re actually Margot, there’s no girls on the internet
Somehow I don’t think you’re a reliable source on that, Miss Anthropy
Seems to work 4/5 times if you ask me
As intelligent as she is beautiful, folks!
Hi Margot Robbie! <3
Hi! 💖
Does it make sense for an internationally recognized actress to come into the Fediverse to explain too notch level critical thinking…hmm. Agree with the points - yep. Think it’s actually Margot Robbie - doubtful.
I’m just applying the above rules
That’s the beautiful thing. It doesn’t really matter if she’s actually Margot Robbie.
If she isn’t, she’s a person (probably - AI/ML systems are really good at tricking us these days) that posts generally amusing, positive, and pro-labor things.
If she is Margot Robbie, then, she’s a person that posts generally amusing, positive, and pro-labor things, while also having been publicly recognized as being skilled and talented at her day job.
Either way, it’s someone that I’m glad is active on Lemmy.
New sincerity. :)
That’s a phrase that I was unfamiliar with. Thank you!
Ask yourself why you care what celebrities are promoting in the first place.
Even if they are being ‘real’, odds are they were just paid to say good things about a product they never actually use to take advantage of idiots who can’t think for themselves.
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Cringey weirdo.
Does it make sense for Academy Award nominated actress Margot Robbie to promote her latest movie on her first personal social media account in years?
does it make sense for academy award nominated actress Margot Robbie to cross the picket line to promote the barbie movie on lemmy during the sag-aftra strike? yep, she’s well-known for her anti-union politics and general disdain for labour. therefore, this must be a real account.
If you have been following me here at all, you would know that I have been extremely vocal about my support of the strike here, and I have been keeping with the strike rules and only mentioned the name of the movie ONCE here after the strike started.
Your smug accusation only shows your own ignorance, while I do try to be nice here, I will not stand for you making light of our fight for survival as some kind of gotcha.
Now kindly fuck off.
Dune 2 was postponed because of the strike, and I was really looking forward to it.
I mean I’m REALLY looking forward to that movie, but if my minor inconvenience means a better standard of living/opportunity for a large amount of people I’ll wait for however long.
The Margot Robbie is Australian so this comment would have been written as ‘now kindly fuck off, cunt.’ Therefore, I am now questioning the legitimacy of this account.
Hi Margot!!
I learned that Americans get very offended at that word… it takes a lot of restraint.
Fair enough. You have always come across as a very thoughtful person.
Source for that? Because all I’m seeing is footage of her striking with SAG and pro-union comments she’s made online.
https://www.buzzfeed.com/ishabassi/margot-robbie-sag-aftra-strike-support-actors-rights
The attitude toward celebrities on Lemmy versus on Mastodon is really weird. Same thing with reddit, a lot of the time. Like, okay, I have no idea if that’s really Margot Robbie or not, but famous people do use the internet. Attention doesn’t make them a different species that forgets how to use keyboards or something.
Might as well be nice?
i thought we were just joking around here, but if you’re being serious: there’s zero chance that’s actually Margot Robbie.
or maybe like a 1% chance it’s actually Margot Robbie, but for the last three months she’s been playing a character on lemmy that’s a goofy impersonation of Margot Robbie that breaks character all the time.
I mean, I have no idea if she’s Margot Robbie, but I figure I might as well treat her as if she is. Doesn’t cost me anything. It’s basically the solution to the solipsism problem with lower stakes.
Personally, I think doing a goofy impression of yourself and occasionally breaking character would be a good way to fly under the radar.
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Aaaand it’s happening just as we all predicted. Stealing likeness in a whole new way
Right? I remember watching some time ago a AI-generated video of an actress - I think it was Kirsten Stewart - doing a monologue. It was eerily undistinguishable from reality. This is happening, and actors have all the rights to be upset by it until proper compensation rules are in place.
I think this goes deeper than just actors compensation. This will take things to a new level when this hits courtrooms. Imagine sitting there watching a video of you doing something you never actually did entered into evidence.
Captain Kirk in “Court Martial”.
“But…that’s not the way it happened.”
So perfect!
Even as a professional editor for over a decade who is actively looking for them, it is becoming increasingly difficult to tell what is AI generated and what is real. I’m right most of the time, but most of the time is only like 75% of the time. And again, this is when I am actively looking for them. And the tech is only getting better.
Society is going to have to adjust to actually demand some proof of authenticity when it comes to content like this.
The good news is that techniques like public-private key cryptography do actually provide a way to do this, so at least on the technical side, this is a solvable problem. The harder part is getting people to question content that they want to be true, like political propaganda that affirms their own beliefs and biases.
Just imagine the mess we’ll be in when you can just generate an unlimited amount of videos of some disliked minority committing fake crimes and send them directly to people that you know will be receptive to radicalization, since you’ve already identified them through data brokers and targeted advertising.
Maybe this is just me getting older - hell, it probably is - but I’m getting more and more detached from tech in general and trying to find more meaning and enjoyment in real-life interaction, community, friendships, and connection, as well as more physical hobbies. I’m not convinced that humans are really equipped to mentally handle the world we’re creating, and I’m finding myself not wanting much to do with it.
Finding meaning away from tech is always a good idea. Helps us from getting completely sucked into the vortex of Silicon Valley.
…although he has not shied away from approving digitally altered versions of himself in film.
Besides being irrelevant, does this seem a little bit judgmental to anyone else?
Whoever wrote that apparently doesn’t understand consent
Tom Hanks was asking for it.
If he didn’t want to be digitally altered, he shouldn’t have given us the idea.
What was he wearing?
Just sayin’: I noticed a Woody when they digitized him. He seemed a very willing participant in the whole thing.
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The good thing about this is that people maybe start questioning if a product for some reason gets “better” because their favorite actor says so - because he got money for doing so.
Imho, he doesn’t need to warn his fans, they are not affected by this at all. Maybe the toothpaste is even a bit cheaper compared to the one that actually paid a (probably very pricey) Hollywood star for their ad. He’s the victim, not his fans.
To be fair, if Skynet hunts humanity down, the terminators sounding like America’s Sweetheart Tom Hanks does come as some consolation.
“Reach for the sky!”
Anything for you, TH!
Great reddit humor.
You’re so funny.
Anyone got a link to the ad? Love to see how good it is or not.
I asked the same question. Somebody sent me this but I think it might be a trick.
lmao I can’t tell if this is a joke but that’s a screenshot of the movie The Polar Express
Ha ha yeah I’m just messing with everyone
That’s exactly why SAG-AFTRA are still striking rn.
No it’s not.
They are being hyperbolic. It is pretty clearly and obviously related.
Tom Hanks and some woman going
DENTAL PLAN!
Lisa needs braces!
DENTAL PLAN!
Lisa needs braces!
DENTAL PLAN!
Lisa needs braces!
No no, that’s clealy Otm Shank.
where is the link to the videos?
Found this site , but only shows clips, might not even be from the ad.
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thanks
Black mirror in real life. So it begins.
Black Mirror has been a reality for a few years now
Black Mirror has been a reality for a few years now
Gotta survive until San Junipero.
That would be a sweet ending without a doubt
Yup, silly me.
Wilson needs braces.
Dental plan!
Wilson needs braces.
It was a calculated risk, they just suck at math.
It’s definitely gonna cost them a number greater than 1 multiplied by what they would have to spend to actually contact Took Hanks.
Dental plan
Chet needs braces
Dental plan
Chet needs braces
Dental plan
Chet needs braces
I heard that while reading it. Like when someone says “Good news [everyone]!” and it sounds like the professor Farnsworth. God I haven’t thought about that episode in ages.
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Is using an actor’s likeness without their permission copyright infringement?
There are rules in Hollywood that they can’t use an actors likeness without permission, but obviously the people who made this ad don’t care about that. I think this is an area the law doesn’t cover yet, although it should.
Although using fake Shemps was somewhat common throughout the 20th century, Screen Actors Guild contracts ban reproducing an actor’s likeness unless the original actor gave permission to do so, largely because of a lawsuit filed by Crispin Glover — following his replacement by Jeffrey Weissman in Back to the Future Part II — that determined that the method violates the original actor’s personality rights. The method continues to be used in cases, such as Shemp’s, where the original actor is deceased and permission from the deceased actor’s estate is granted.
Copyright is very strictly for creative works, which your likeness is not.
You might be able to stretch trademark law into applying here, but my understanding is that, at least at the federal level, there’s not really much of a legal framework for dealing with this sort of stuff yet. Hopefully we’ll get something soon.
Granted but impersonation is also a crime, is it not?
When used for fraud, absolutely. But it can also be used for parody and satire, which is strongly constitutionally protected as free speech.
A case like this is pretty open and shut since it’s a blatant scam, but what if it was simply a fake Tom Hanks saying political statements he disagrees with? Would someone be able to argue parody? Probably not successfully, but there is a blurry line there. What if you simply had to include a disclaimer that it’s AI generated? Would all content be allowable in that case?
Likeness rights are state based and accordingly vary state to state. As usual with such things, you can just assume CA and NY is the “prevailing” law on it.
