Overview

• The U.K.’s Equity and Canada’s ACTRA joined SAG-AFTRA in formal statements rejecting Tilly Norwood as a performer and warning against replacing actors with synthetic characters.
• Equity officials said they are using GDPR demands to trace the AI’s data sources and disclosed they are supporting a member who believes her image and performance were used without permission.
• SAG-AFTRA reiterated that the character was trained on countless performers’ work without authorization, and union president Sean Astin said material was improperly obtained and flagged potential leverage with talent agencies.
• Creator Eline Van der Velden defended Tilly as a creative work and a tool for storytelling, while maintaining that talent agencies have expressed interest with a representation decision expected in the coming months.
• High-profile actors urged agencies not to participate and some called for boycotts, as the dispute feeds into ongoing industry efforts to enforce consent, compensation and transparency in AI use following the 2023 contracts.