Several talent agents are interested in signing Tilly Norwood, according to Deadline. Problem is, Tilly Norwood isn’t a real person. She’s an AI creation from Eline Van der Velden, a Dutch comedian and technologist who developed the “actress” with her production company, Particle6, through its new AI talent studio offshoot called Xicoia. At the Zurich Summit this past weekend, Van der Velden said discussions with agencies have progressed significantly since Norwood made her debut in a comedy sketch in July, adding an announcement about representation should arrive “in the coming months.”
As you might imagine, though, few Hollywood actors are happy about this potential watershed moment for the entertainment industry. Many actors have disparaged the move on social media, in comments on Deadline’s story, as well as through their own social media channels and comments to the press. Academy Award nominee Emily Blunt, while promoting her new A24 movie with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, The Smashing Machine, was asked to read portions of a report about Tilly Norwood aloud when she stopped by the Variety Awards Circuit podcast, and had a pretty visceral reaction.
