CONTENT WARNING: This article discusses content that might be distressing to some readers.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice star Jenna Ortega has opened up about the disturbing interactions she’s had on social media which led to her deleting her X (formerly Twitter) account.
Ahead of the release of the highly-anticipated Beetlejuice sequel and the second season of Wednesday, the 21-year-old scream queen spoke with The New York Times about her stellar career.
During the conversation, Ortega unpacked the deeply disturbing reason why she hates artificial intelligence (AI) and how it affected her as a child star on the internet.
“I hate AI,” she began.
“I mean, here’s the thing: AI could be used for incredible things. I think I saw something the other day where they were saying that artificial intelligence was able to detect breast cancer four years before it progressed. That’s beautiful. Let’s keep it to that.
“Did I like being 14 and making a Twitter account because I was supposed to and seeing dirty edited content of me as a child? No. It’s terrifying. It’s corrupt. It’s wrong.”
Further in the conversation where she reflected on navigating the internet as a child actor, Ortega revealed the first DM she’d opened was an “unsolicited photo of a man’s genitals”. She was only 12 when she opened the message.
“I used to have that Twitter account and I was told that, ‘Oh, you got to do it, you got to build your image.’ I ended up deleting it about two, three years ago because of the influx after the show had come out — these absurd images and photos, and I already was in a confused state that I just deleted it,” the Wednesday star continued.
“It was disgusting, and it made me feel bad. It made me feel uncomfortable. Anyway, that’s why I deleted it, because I couldn’t say anything without seeing something like that. So one day I just woke up, and I thought, ‘Oh, I don’t need this anymore.’ So I dropped it.”
This isn’t the first time a celebrity has been targeted by deepfake porn or sexually explicit AI images. In June, Australia’s Jacob Elordi was targeted in numerous non-consensual, sexually explicit deepfake videos featuring a 17-year-old and Taylor Swift also became the target of AI-generated sexually explicit images on X.
And it’s not just celebrities who are impacted by this technology. Regular people have also been impacted by the creation of non-consensual AI sexually explicit images.
Recently, a bill criminalising the sharing of non-consensual sexually explicit deepfakes was passed through parliament.
People who share deepfakes or sexually explicit AI’s of others without their consent can face seven years in prison under the new law.
Image source: Getty Images / Randy Shropshire
Help is available.
- If you require immediate assistance, please call 000.
- If you’d like to speak to someone about sexual violence, please call the 1800 Respect hotline on 1800 737 732 or chat online.
- Under 25? You can reach Kids Helpline at 1800 55 1800 or chat online.
The post Jenna Ortega Says She Deleted Twitter After Receiving AI-Generated Explicit Images As A Teen appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .
