Hollywood rails against new Chinese AI threat

Footage of Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt banging each other went viral on the internet last week. But this is just one example of what can be achieved with a new Chinese AI model. Other users have made similar films with characters from several popular Netflix series.

“Netflix will not allow Bytedance to convert our valuable content into a free public domain,” the streaming giant wrote in a strongly worded statement.

Seedance 2.0 is currently only available to Chinese users of the Bytedance app Capcut. And the clips generated are a maximum of 15 seconds long.

But the fact The fact that the footage looks so realistic and is so easy to generate – and that copyrighted material is used in the AI ​​model – has prompted Hollywood to enter the fray. Many in the film industry are also concerned that AI technology has gotten so good so quickly. One of them is Rhett Reese, screenwriter behind the action film “Deadpool.”

“I hate to say it, but it’s probably over for us,” he writes on X.

Several film companies, including Disney and Paramount Skydance, are also calling for a stop to Seedance 2.0.

“Bytedance violates established copyright laws that protect the rights of creators and are the basis for millions of American jobs,” writes the film group organization MPA in a statement.

After the criticism Bytedance has placed certain restrictions on the app and stated that they respect copyright.

“We are taking steps to strengthen current procedures while working to prevent the unauthorized use of copyrighted material,” the company wrote in a statement, according to The Wall Street Journal.