Chris Pratt stands as the guardian of human actors, unafraid of the possibility of AI encroaching on his territory. In fact, during the New York premiere of "Mercy" on Jan. 20, the "Parks and Recreation" alum shared his unwavering stance: "I don’t feel like someone’s going to replace me with AI." He even went as far as to take a shot at one particular AI actress, Tilly Norwood. "I heard about this Tilly Norwood thing. I think that’s all bullshit. I’ve never seen her in a movie. I don’t know who this bitch is," he said with a smirk.
He added, "You know, it’s all fake until it’s something." As for Tilly Norwood, she’s a completely AI-generated "actress" created by Eline Van der Velden. After the Dutch writer presented Tilly as a digital performer at the Zurich Film Festival in September, announcing the hopes of the computerized "actress" to get represented by a real talent agency, the tech sparked immediate backlash from Hollywood.
In a statement attributed to Tilly by E! News, it seems the life-like software has a sense of humor. She responded to Chris' comments with a playful, "Ah, I’ll date Chris Pine’s AI twin then!"
While Chris—who shares son Jack, 13, with ex-wife Anna Faris, as well as kids Lyla, 5, Eloise, 3, and Ford, 14 months, with wife Katherine Schwarzenegger Pratt—made it clear that he doesn't support the idea of AI putting actors out of work, he can see how the advanced technology has its upsides.
"I think it’s an amazing tool and in the right hands could really help people to tell stories," he explained to Variety. "It’s inevitably going to disrupt the industry. We’re in the midst of an intellectual revolution. We are not the first or last industry to be disrupted by AI. And I think we just keep moving forward."
The "Guardians of the Galaxy" actor continued, "Great filmmakers are going to make great films and they’re going to probably implement these tools if it helps streamline production. If it helps bring the cost of production down, it’s inevitable." But he emphasized that AI will never replace what only the human experience can create. "I don’t think you’re going to replace the human soul of a director or a writer or an actor or a singer or any of this stuff that requires human yearning and suffering and vision in art," he said firmly.
