Overview

• Tilly Norwood, a synthetic performer created by Eline Van der Velden’s Particle6, was unveiled at the Zurich Film Festival after a fully AI-generated YouTube sketch appeared online.
• SAG-AFTRA said Norwood is not an actress but a computer-generated character trained on the work of real performers without permission or compensation.
• The union warned that producers or talent agencies engaging with the AI figure would violate existing guild contracts.
• Prominent actors including Emily Blunt, Whoopi Goldberg, Ralph Ineson and Natasha Lyonne voiced alarm, with Lyonne urging a boycott of any agency that signs the character.
• Van der Velden defends the project as an artwork and claims multiple agencies expressed interest, while Gersh Agency chair Leslie Siebert said her firm will not represent Norwood.