SAG-AFTRA, which represents approximately 160,000 actors, announcers, broadcast journalists, dancers, DJs, news writers, news editors, program hosts, puppeteers, recording artists, singers, stunt performers, voice-over artists, and other entertainment and media professionals, issued a statement condemning the blatant violations enabled by Bytedance’s new AI video model, Seedance 2.0.
You can read their full statement below.
SAG-AFTRA stands behind studios condemning blatant infringement enabled by Bytedance’s new AI video model Seedance 2.0. This violation includes unauthorized use of a member’s voice or likeness. This is unacceptable and undermines the ability of human talent to earn a living. Seedance 2.0 ignores laws, ethics, industry standards, and basic principles of consent. Responsible AI development requires accountability, and that doesn’t exist here.
Charles Rivkin, Chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPA), issued the following statement regarding the launch of China’s AI service SeaDance 2.0.
“In just one day, Chinese AI service Seedance 2.0 has misappropriated U.S. copyrighted material at scale. By launching its service without meaningful protections against copyright infringement, ByteDance is ignoring established copyright law that protects the rights of creators and supports millions of American jobs. ByteDance should immediately cease its infringing activities.”
This was a two-line prompt in Seadance 2. If Hollywood is cooked, then maybe everyone is right. If Hollywood is cooked, everyone is overcooked. pic.twitter.com/dNTyLUIwAV
— Ruairi Robinson (@RuairiRobinson) February 11, 2026
This was announced after Irish filmmaker Ruairi Robinson posted a 15-second video created by AI in Seadance 2.0 that showed Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt fighting on a bridge.
Ruairi Robinson’s post was captioned: “This was a two-line prompt for Seadance 2. If Hollywood is cooked, maybe everyone is right. If Hollywood is cooked, everyone is overcooked.”
AI systems are trained based on data obtained from the open web. This includes copyrighted content such as film clips. We have already reached a tipping point, and if these AI services are allowed to continue without proper legislation or accountability, the future will undoubtedly become even bleaker for many in this industry.
