Hollywood is in turmoil because of a new AI-generated “actor” named Tilly Norwood. While her creator defends her as a creative innovation, stars like Emily Blunt and Natasha Lyonne have voiced strong opposition.
Who Is Tilly Norwood?
Tilly Norwood was created by Xicoia, an AI talent studio spun off from Dutch comedian and writer Eline Van der Velden’s AI production company, Particle6. She made her debut at the Zurich Film Festival and has her own social media accounts. Consequently, talent agencies are already showing interest.
Van der Velden said, “We want Tilly to be the next Scarlett Johansson or Natalie Portman, that’s the aim of what we’re doing.” She added, “Audiences? They care about the story—not whether the star has a pulse. Tilly is already attracting interest from talent agencies and fans. The age of synthetic actors isn’t ‘coming’ — it’s here.”
Furthermore, Tilly appeared in a fully AI-generated comedy sketch called AI Commissioner. Her creators wrote on Facebook, “I may be AI generated, but I’m feeling very real emotions right now. I am so excited for what’s coming next!”
Hollywood Stars Respond
As expected, Hollywood stars reacted strongly. Emily Blunt said on a Variety podcast, “Does it disappoint me? I don’t know… other than to say how terrifying this is.” When shown an image of Tilly, she added, “No, are you serious? That’s an AI? Good Lord, we’re screwed… agencies, don’t do that. Please stop taking away our human connection.”
Similarly, filmmaker Luca Guadagnino declared, “Say goodbye to actors. No one should be supporting this.” Likewise, Melissa Barrera and Mara Wilson criticized talent agencies for favoring AI over real performers.
Moreover, Whoopi Goldberg explained, “You are suddenly up against something that’s been generated with 5000 other actors.” However, she added optimistically, “Bring it on. You can always tell them from us. We move differently, our faces move differently, our bodies move differently.”
Meanwhile, Natasha Lyonne called for boycotts: “Any talent agency that engages in this should be boycotted by all guilds… Deeply misguided & totally disturbed.” The SAG-AFTRA union also emphasized, “Tilly is not an actor. She is a character generated by a computer program trained on the work of countless professional performers. She has no life experience and no emotion, and audiences aren’t interested in computer-generated content untethered from human experience.”
Creator Defends AI Actor
In response, Van der Velden stated on Instagram, “Tilly is not a replacement for a human being, but a creative work – a piece of art.” She compared making Tilly to drawing a character or shaping a performance. Additionally, she said, “Each form of art has its place, and each can be valued for what it uniquely brings. I hope we can welcome AI as part of the wider artistic family: one more way to express ourselves, alongside theatre, film, painting, music, and countless others. When we celebrate all forms of creativity, we open doors to new voices, new stories, and new ways of connecting with each other.”