Alarm bells are ringing in Hollywood after a series of clips generated by SeaDance 2.0, the latest artificial intelligence video tool, significantly surpassed “AI slop” in realism and production value.
what’s happening?
The New York Times reports on the reaction to a clip of a fight between Tom Hanks and Brad Pitt posted on X by Irish film director Ruari Robinson (@RuariRobinson).
Robinson said the 15-second video was the result of just a two-line prompt. The clip shows the two A-listers on a rubble-filled roof at dusk. They engage in a lively fistfight, devoid of the most obvious signs of AI slop.
It also has the Hollywood touches you’d expect from a scene like this: close-ups, dramatic music, multiple camera angles, and logical choreography.
ByteDance, the company behind Seedance 2.0, has clearly made significant progress over the past two months. The initial release did not generate the same reaction and the clip did not go viral.
Why is Seedance 2.0 a concern?
The clip raised concerns among industry experts about AI’s ability to create human likenesses so accurately and quickly.
“I think this is nothing short of terrifying for all of us who work in this industry and have dedicated our careers and lives to it,” Deadpool screenwriter Rhett Reese told the Times. “We could see that jobs were costing us here and there.”
This clip also hits a lot of guardrails designed to save that very job. We used Cruise and Pitt’s likenesses without permission and leveraged years of intellectual property to generate the aesthetics and scenes.
Some voices in Hollywood, such as Rick and Morty executive producer and screenwriter Heather Ann Campbell, were less alarmed.
“I think everyone is obsessed with the circus that comes to town and shows off,” Campbell said. She characterized AI tools as “averaging machines” and insisted that nothing she had seen so far was “heart-wrenching,” “provocative” or breathtaking.
Still, extreme concerns about the viability of writers, cast, and directors were common as studios cut costs. This doesn’t even take into account the environmental damage caused by AI or its demands on the energy grid.
What is being done regarding Seedance 2.0?
Hollywood immediately criticized Seadance 2.0 from various angles. The Motion Picture Association of Japan accused the product of misappropriating copyrighted works. Disney sent a cease-and-desist letter, arguing that the use of its characters violated OpenAI’s $1 billion contract with Sora.
“We are taking steps to strengthen our current safeguards to prevent unauthorized use of our intellectual property and likeness by our users,” ByteDance said in a statement.
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