AI Revives Deceased Celebrities, Sparking Ethical Debates and New Fortunes
Generative AI is enabling the digital resurrection of stars, creating lucrative opportunities for estates but raising concerns about exploitation and authenticity.
The advent of generative artificial intelligence is blurring the lines between life and legacy, allowing deceased celebrities to "reprise" iconic roles and their estates to secure ongoing financial gains. This technological advancement, however, is prompting complex ethical discussions about honoring memory versus profiting from a likeness.
Recent examples highlight this trend, such as the upcoming Netflix competition series "Wonka's The Golden Ticket." The show will feature Gene Wilder in his beloved role as Willy Wonka, utilizing AI to recreate his voice more than a decade after his death in 2016. While Wilder's widow, Karen B. Wilder, has endorsed the project, stating it "celebrates the warmth and imagination that he brought to the role," public reactions have ranged from apprehension to criticism, with some finding the concept "haunting."
This practice is not isolated. AI firms are increasingly licensing the voices and likenesses of deceased and living celebrities. ElevenLabs, a San Francisco-based AI company, has partnered with estates of figures like Stan Lee, Maya Angelou, and Alan Turing, and secured agreements with living actors such as Sir Michael Caine and David Hasselhoff. The company's "Iconic Marketplace" serves as a platform for utilizing these digital replicas in commercial and creative works. CMG Worldwide, a firm specializing in intellectual property rights for celebrity estates, has facilitated similar deals, enabling the use of voices from stars like Judy Garland, James Dean, and Burt Reynolds.
James Earl Jones notably signed over the rights to his voice as Darth Vader to Lucasfilm in 2022, allowing for AI-generated dialogue for the character, a move that predates his passing in 2024. Similarly, the estate of Val Kilmer, including his daughter Mercedes, has approved the use of an AI recreation of the actor in the upcoming film "As Deep as the Grave."
Legal experts note that the existing framework for post-mortem rights of publicity is ill-equipped to handle the implications of AI. These rights, which protect against unauthorized commercial use of a person's name and likeness, vary significantly by state, with durations ranging from 10 to 100 years. California, for instance, extends these rights for 70 years past death and has recently updated its statutes to include digital replicas and provide for restraining orders.
Attorneys involved in estate planning observe a growing pressure on heirs to capitalize on these new economic opportunities. "People are anxious about the clapback of the public feeling that they're exploiting these beloved celebrities who are gone," said Adam Streisand, a partner at Sheppard, noting that conversations about "how would dad feel about this?" are becoming common and weighty.
Sharon Klein, president of family wealth for Wilmington Trust, suggests that public acceptance might increase if deceased celebrities had explicitly expressed a desire for their image and voice to be leveraged after their death. Without such clarity, the practice can feel like "exploitation to drag them up from the grave and use their voices."
Despite fan backlash and ethical considerations, the trend is expected to accelerate. "I think it's inevitable that it is going to be a source of tremendous economic opportunity, and that's going to create pressure on heirs to want to take advantage of that opportunity," Streisand stated. "The purists are probably winning out, but I suspect over time that the demand and opportunity is going to be so great that you're going to see a lot more of it."