Stan Lee’s AI Clone Is Now Available For Hire

An AI company announced this week that it is digitally resurrecting famed Marvel creator Stan Lee and charging users for access to his recreated voice and likeness. 

ElevenLabs revealed Wednesday that the late comic book writer’s AI-generated voice and image will be added to its growing collection of celebrity recreations that can be licensed for commercial use. 

“You know what they never tell you about legends?” the AI-generated version of Lee says in a promotional video released by the company. “They outlive the page. A good story doesn’t belong to one moment. It grows. It changes. It gets passed down from generation to generation, constantly evolving.”

“Every great story starts with a hero. And just because a person has a superpower doesn’t mean they don’t have the same problems that you have,” the promo continues. “So for the creators, the ones dreaming, building, chasing that one great idea, as long as there are people who believe in it, who carry it forward, it lives on.”

Notably, comments were disabled on the YouTube upload, though critics found their way to social media to express their objections.

“Stop, let the man rest in peace. Lunatics always create problems,” one X user wrote.

“I don’t even dislike AI like most people but using it to revive a dead person is disgusting,” another agreed.

“Think about it. You can now rent a dead man’s voice and likeness for a corporate presentation. We are officially living in the science fiction stories we grew up reading,” echoed a third.

Mixed among the negative comments were a few supporters.

“Stan Lee’s voice living on through AI is actually kind of beautiful,” one person wrote. “The man spent his whole life making stories feel alive, and now that energy gets to keep reaching people. Excelsior never really had an expiration date!”

According to ElevenLabs, users will be able to generate comic-book-style images featuring Lee’s likeness, recreate his voice for non-commercial use, and use the AI-generated voice to narrate books through the company’s app. 

“Stan always believed in meeting his fans where they were: in the pages of a comic, at a convention, or in a quick on-screen cameo,” lawyer and board member for Stan Lee Universe Chaz Rainey said in a statement, per Variety. “This partnership is a way of continuing that. Fans have always told us that when they read his comics, they hear the words in Stan’s voice, and now, thanks to ElevenLabs, we can make that a reality.”

Lee, who died in 2018, is the latest celebrity to receive an AI-generated digital replica after death.

An AI-generated version of actor Val Kilmer is set to appear in the upcoming film “As Deep as the Grave” following his death from throat cancer last year. Other deceased celebrities, including James Dean and Suzanne Somers, have also been recreated using AI technology. 

Living actors are getting into the game, too. Matthew McConaughey and Michael Caine are among the celebrities who have partnered with ElevenLabs to create and license AI versions of their voices.