Robin Williams’ Daughter Zelda Slams AI Cloning of His Voice

Robin Williams’ daughter Zelda is publicly condemning the use of artificial intelligence to recreate her father’s voice, calling it not only “personally disturbing” but concerning to anyone who values the impact of human performance in entertainment. The use of AI is a central tenant in SAG-AFTRA’s decision to strike, which Zelda addressed in her Instagram Story Sunday.

“I am not an impartial voice in SAG’s fight against AI. I’ve witnessed for YEARS how many people want to train these models to create/recreate actors who cannot consent, like Dad,” she wrote on social media in a statement. “This isn’t theoretical, it is very very real. I’ve already heard AI used to get his ‘voice’ to say whatever people want and while I find it personally disturbing, the ramifications go far beyond my own feelings.”

“Living actors deserve a chance to create characters with their choices, to voice cartoons, to put their HUMAN effort and time into the pursuit of performance,” Zelda continued in her Story. “These recreations are, at their very best, a poor facsimile of greater people, but at their worst, a horrendous Frankensteinian monster, cobbled together from the worst bits of everything this industry is, instead of what it should stand for.”

The Dead Poets Society actor died by suicide in 2014 at age 62, having previously been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and severe depression. An autopsy would later determine the actor and comedian had also developed Lewy Body Dementia. Robin’s voice will be used in a new Disney short, Once Upon a Studio, as “previously unheard dialogue” the performer recorded prior to his passing will be attributed to his Aladdin character, Genie, with the consent of his estate, according to Josh Gad.

Zelda’s statement comes as the Writer Guild of America’s strike comes to a close, having reached a tentative deal over issues including the use of AI, among other things. In the new contract, writers will have protections against AI. “AI can’t write or rewrite literary material,” the contract reads. Additionally, if a company uses a writer’s material to train AI models, the WGA can deem that to be prohibited. Companies must inform writers if material was written by AI, and writers can’t be forced by employers to use it.” SAG-AFTRA continues to remain on strike.