Bruce Willis denies reports of selling his face to an artificial intelligence company to make Deepfake Digital Twin

Just a few days ago, that actor was widely reported Bruce Willis it was selling the rights to allow the creation of a “digital twin” of itself for use on screen in TV and movies. That digital twin would be created using deepfake technology, similar to a telephone advertisement he’d been involved in recently, which he didn’t appear on set. His face was also digitally produced and altered in the film Looperwhere it has been de-aged with technology.

This was interesting news in the wake of Willis’ recent withdrawal earlier this year due to his diagnosis of aphasia, a condition that affects his ability to communicate. But apparently, that may not be true.

Over the weekend, the BBC (via Deadline) reported that a spokesperson for Willis denies having any kind of partnership or arrangement with the company. Deepcake, the company in question, confirmed this to the BBC, saying: “The wording on the rights is wrong … Bruce cannot sell the rights to anyone, they are his by default.”

Deepfake companies use artificial intelligence to create realistic simulations of famous people. A Willis deepfake appeared in an ad for a Russian telecommunications company last year. Deepcake claims to have worked with the actor at AI for the announcement and used an enthusiastic recommendation from him on their website, but Willis’ staff did not confirm this to the BBC.

Last week, Star Wars veteran James Earl Jones handed the rights to his unique Darth Vader tones to another artificial intelligence company, Respeecher, indicating that he would be retiring from the role and passing the baton through the use of technology.

This is such strange and new territory for the entertainment world. It will be interesting to see how it turns out in the future. I’m glad the Bruce Willis likeness won’t continue to be used without his involvement. I think it would be so weird to see him in a movie and know he wasn’t really there. We will miss Willis after retirement, but there are plenty of other actors out there to take on new roles.