Hollywood Actors Union Slams AI ‘Synthetic Performer’ Pitched As The ‘Next Scarlett Johansson’

The media labor union SAG-AFTRA has come out against a 100% AI-generated “actress” being touted by its creators as “the next Scarlett Johansson or Natalie Portman.”

The “synthetic performer,” which goes by the name Tilly Norwood, was concocted by the U.K.-based production studio Particle 6.

“To be clear, ‘Tilly Norwood’ is not an actor, it’s a character generated by a computer program that was trained on the work of countless professional performers — without permission or compensation,” SAG-AFTRA wrote in a statement shared on social media. 

 

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“It has no life experience to draw from, no emotion and, from what we’ve seen, audiences aren’t interested in watching computer-generated content untethered from the human experience. It doesn’t solve any ‘problem’ — it creates the problem of using stolen performances to put actors out of work, jeopardizing performer livelihoods and devaluing human artistry.”

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Meanwhile, Tilly Norwood’s creator, Eline Van der Velden, argues that the AI-generated character “is not a replacement for a human being, but a creative work — a piece of art.”

The creator of AI actress Tilly Norwood has released a statement following a weekend of heated backlash.

“She is not a replacement for a human being, but a creative work – a piece of art. Like many forms of art before her, she sparks conversation, and that in itself shows the… pic.twitter.com/CTtYbeuJBt

— Variety (@Variety) September 29, 2025

“I see AI not as a replacement for people, but as a new tool, a new paintbrush,” Van der Velden said, per Variety. “Just as animation, puppetry, or CGI opened fresh possibilities without taking away from live acting, AI offers another way to imagine and build stories. I’m an actor myself, and nothing — certainly not an AI character —  can take away the craft or joy of human performance.”

While there has been strong pushback against AI in the industry, some proponents predict that it will be adopted sooner than anyone thinks.

“We’re seeing the change in some of the bigger broadcasters and studios going from ’Oh, I don’t think AI is for us, or we’re not ready and we’re scared, to saying, oh my gosh, we have got to get on board now,’” former Sony and A+E Networks executive Tom Davidson, who now works for Particle 6, told the British news outlet Broadcast International in July. 

“Literally in the last three months, I’ve seen a huge change with the bigger groups from saying this will happen at one point in the future to we have got to get on this now.” 

Davidson said cost savings are one of the biggest drivers. “I’m hearing a lot of producers being asked for the same quality but with 25% less budget, but how can you do it? That’s very, very difficult but AI can play a huge role in supporting that,” he added.

Van der Velden said the next likely iteration will be using AI to support real-life actors. 

“We’ll have AI talent and then we’ll also have real talents,” she predicted. “But real talents will probably have an AI digital twin of themselves, so they won’t have scheduling conflicts in the same way they do now. Or if they need to do retakes and they’re already moved on to the next shoot, that will be no problem. That is definitely the future.”

Actress Emily Blunt reacted strongly to an image of Tilly Norwood, calling it “terrifying.”

“No, are you serious? That’s an AI? Good Lord, we’re screwed. That is really, really scary, Come on, agencies, don’t do that. Please stop. Please stop taking away our human connection,” she told Variety.