Actor Tom Hanks questions AI use - 30th Oct 2023

When is Tom Hanks not Tom Hanks? The Oscar-winning actor has been asking this question, after he saw himself advertising a dental plan. Hanks had never performed in the commercial, legally agreed to it, or been paid for it.

The Tom Hanks who appeared in the advert was generated by artificial intelligence (AI), an issue which is of growing concern to both actors and presenters. Star of 'Good Morning America', Gayle King, has spoken out against an advert which utilised a fake version of her to market weight loss pills, and the technology's been behind many examples of propaganda and fake news.

During his acting career, Hanks has benefitted from technology such as computer-generated images (CGI). In 2004, the animated film 'Polar Express' took photos of Hanks’ face to construct a digital animation in his likeness, and as recently as 2022, in the film 'A Man Named Otto' Hanks was de-aged in certain scenes with the help of AI. However, it's the unofficial use of their image or voice which celebrities object to.

In a podcast interview earlier this year, Hanks commented that an AI Tom Hanks could act in films even after he'd passed on. He warned, "I could be hit by a bus tomorrow, and that's it, but performances can go on and on... there'll be nothing to tell you that it's not me.”

For actors, the concern is so deep that this year the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) have both gone on strike over AI replacing artists and about wages.

Although the real Tom Hanks may not be selling you a dental plan any time soon, he'll be legitimately making good use of AI in his next film, which will once again see him de-aged.

Even so, audiences may question if it's genuinely him.