Zelda Williams Speaks Out Against AI Use of Her Father
Zelda Williams, daughter of the late Robin Williams, has issued a passionate plea for people to stop creating and sharing artificial intelligence-generated videos of her father. The 36-year-old took to Instagram to express her anguish, denouncing the trend as “disgusting” and contrary to what her father would have wanted.
Robin Williams, an iconic comedian and Oscar-winning actor, died by suicide in August 2014 at the age of 63. It was later revealed that he had been suffering from Lewy body dementia, a progressive brain disorder that affects thinking, memory, and movement.
Emotional Instagram Post Condemns AI Creations
“Please, just stop sending me AI videos of Dad,” Zelda wrote in a heartfelt post. “Stop believing I wanna see it or that I’ll understand — I don’t and I won’t.” She acknowledged that some people may be trying to provoke her, stating, “If you’re just trying to troll me, I’ve seen way worse, I’ll restrict and move on.”
However, her main concern was with the ethical implications. “If you’ve got any decency, just stop doing this to him and to me, to everyone even, full stop,” she added. “It’s dumb, it’s a waste of time and energy, and believe me, it’s NOT what he’d want.”
AI Deepfakes and the Rise of Sora 2
Williams’ comments come in the wake of OpenAI’s limited release of its video-generation tool, Sora 2. Although access to the tool is currently by invitation only, social media platforms have already seen a surge in deepfake videos featuring deceased celebrities.
Despite OpenAI’s policy prohibiting the creation of content featuring living public figures without consent, the company allows for the generation of “historical figures.” This loophole has led to bizarre and sometimes disturbing content, such as AI-generated videos of the late rappers Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G. in a fictional wrestling match, or wildlife icon Steve Irwin confronting the stingray that caused his untimely death.
Zelda’s Critique of AI’s Impact on Legacy
“To watch the legacies of real people be condensed down to ‘this vaguely looks and sounds like them so that’s enough’… is maddening,” Zelda wrote. She criticized the trend as exploitative, saying, “You’re not making art, you’re making disgusting, over-processed hotdogs out of the lives of human beings… shoving them down someone else’s throat hoping they’ll give you a little thumbs up and like it. Gross.”
She further rejected the notion that AI deepfake content represents innovation. “For the love of EVERYTHING, stop calling it ‘the future’,” she wrote. “AI is just badly recycling and regurgitating the past to be reconsumed. You are taking in the Human Centipede of content, and from the very, very end of the line, all while the folks at the front laugh and laugh, consume and consume.”
A Longstanding Opposition to AI in Entertainment
This is not the first time Zelda Williams has voiced her opposition to AI recreations of her father. During the SAG-AFTRA strike in October 2023 — which centered on protecting creative professionals from AI-generated replacements — Zelda spoke out again on Instagram. She described AI-generated renditions of her father’s voice as “personally disturbing.”
“I’ve witnessed for YEARS how many people want to train these models to create/recreate actors who cannot consent, like Dad,” she said at the time. “These recreations are, at their very best, a poor facsimile of greater people, but at their worst, a horrendous Frankensteinian monster… instead of what this industry should stand for.”
OpenAI Has Yet to Respond
Following Zelda Williams’ public criticism, Fortune reached out to OpenAI to ask about the use of its Sora 2 platform in generating deepfakes of deceased celebrities. As of publication, the company has not provided a response. The lack of immediate action or comment from OpenAI only adds fuel to the growing debate surrounding AI’s role in entertainment, legacy, and consent.
The issue underscores broader concerns about ethics in artificial intelligence and the extent to which digital recreations should be allowed to mimic real people — especially those who are no longer able to give consent.
This article is inspired by content from Original Source. It has been rephrased for originality. Images are credited to the original source.