An AI-generated video depicting Hollywood stars – including Scarlett Johansson, Jerry Seinfeld and Adam Sandler – protesting Kanye West’s antisemitic comments has gone viral online, prompting criticism from Johansson over the “misuse of AI”. The fake viral video showed celebrities in a T-shirt featuring a middle finger with a Star of David inside it and “Kanye” written below. The clip implied that they were responding to West’s most recent antisemitic remarks and a swastika shirt he was selling on his Yeezy website before it was pulled down by Shopify.
The protest video was generated using AI without permission from the celebrities to use their likenesses. So, reacting to it, Scarlett Johansson outlined her objections to the deepfake video regardless of its intentions. The ‘Black Widow’ star said, “It has been brought to my attention by family members and friends, that an AI-generated video featuring my likeness, in response to an antisemitic view, has been circulating online and gaining traction,” as per CNN.
“I am a Jewish woman who has no tolerance for antisemitism or hate speech of any kind. But I also firmly believe that the potential for hate speech multiplied by AI is a far greater threat than any one person who takes accountability for it. We must call out the misuse of AI, no matter its messaging, or we risk losing a hold on reality,” she added.
Johansson’s statement continued, “I have unfortunately been a very public victim of AI, but the truth is that the threat of AI affects each and every one of us. There is a 1000 foot wave coming regarding AI that several progressive countries, not including the United States, have responded to in a responsible manner. It is terrifying that the US government is paralyzed when it comes to passing legislation that protects all of its citizens against the imminent dangers of AI.”
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The fake clip also included AI-generated imagery of Adam Levine, Mila Kunis, Lenny Kravitz, Mark Zuckerberg, Sacha Baron Cohen, Ben Stiller, Natalie Portman, David Schwimmer and others, set to “Hava Nagila,” a Jewish folk song that is typically played at celebratory cultural events.
In her statement, Johansson called on elected officials to take legislative action against AI abuses. “I urge the US government to make the passing of legislation limiting AI use a top priority. It is a bipartisan issue that enormously affects the immediate future of humanity at large,” she said.
The AI video was created by Ori Bejerano, who describes himself as a generative AI expert on his Instagram bio. His original post of the video includes a notice that reads, “This content was digitally created or altered with AI to seem real.”
“It’s time to stop being silent and response to antisemites like Kanye West in the strongest way possible,” the Instagram caption read. “We must demand from the social networks to stop giving stage to antisemitism and hatred,” it added.