The real Scarlett Johansson decries ‘misuse of AI’ by a deepfake video shaming Kanye West
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Scarlett Johansson, Steven Spielberg, Adam Sandler and several other Jewish celebrities assembled in matching T-shirts to shame Ye (formerly Kanye West) for his latest antisemitic outbursts — at least that’s what a self-proclaimed “generative AI expert” fantasized this week.
Israel-based creator and marketing professional Ori Bejerano on Tuesday published a black-and-white video on social media featuring the celebrity deepfakes wearing the same white T-shirt emblazoned with a black outline of a middle finger above the word “Kanye.”
The design — clearly riffing off Ye’s recent swastika merchandise — also features the Star of David inside the outline. The artificial intelligence-generated humans don’t speak but gesture casually as a dance remix of Jewish folk song “Hava Nagila” plays.
Bejerano’s video also lifts the likenesses of actors Jerry Seinfeld, “Friends” stars David Schwimmer and Lisa Kudrow, Jack Black, Natalie Portman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Mila Kunis and Ben Stiller. Among the other high-profile names (and faces) deepfaked for the video are Lenny Kravitz, Adam Levine, Drake, Mark Zuckerberg, Sacha Baron Cohen and Woody Allen.
Ye, formerly Kanye West, went on an antisemitic rant on social media, declaring ‘dominion’ over Bianca Censori and calling for Diddy to be freed.
Near the end of the minute-long post, an AI rendering of “50 First Dates” star Sandler flashes a middle finger and smiles. The video concludes with the declaration, “Enough is Enough.”
“Join the fight against antisemitism,” the clip adds.
In his social media captions, Bejerano condemned the rapper-entrepreneur for his latest public embrace of Nazism. He also called for more public action against antisemitism.
However, not everyone was a fan of Bejerano’s AI-driven social media campaign. Johansson, whose likeness opens the viral video, spoke out against the “misuse of AI” in a statement shared with The Times on Wednesday.
“It has been brought to my attention by family members and friends, that an AI-generated video featuring my likeness, in response to an antisemitic view, has been circulating online and gaining traction. I am a Jewish woman who has no tolerance for antisemitism or hate speech of any kind,” she wrote.
Shopify shuts down Ye’s post-Super Bowl efforts to sell swastika T-shirts on his website, saying the rapper once known as Kanye West ‘violated our terms.’
“But I also firmly believe that the potential for hate speech multiplied by AI is a far greater threat than any one person who takes accountability for it. We must call out the misuse of AI, no matter its messaging, or we risk losing a hold on reality.”
She added: “I have unfortunately been a very public victim of AI, but the truth is that the threat of AI affects each and every one of us.”
“Black Widow” and “Her” star Johansson publicly condemned the use of artificial intelligence last year. In May 2024 she hired a legal team after discovering OpenAI had released a ChatGPT voice that sounded eerily similar to hers without gaining her permission. The growing popularity of AI continues to loom over Hollywood, more than a year after actors and writers expressed their concerns during the dual strikes of 2023.
Johansson in her statement also called for more government oversight of AI.
“There is a 1000 foot wave coming regarding AI that several progressive countries, not including the United States, have responded to in a responsible manner,” the Oscar-nominated “Jojo Rabbit” star wrote. “It is terrifying that the US government is paralyzed when it comes to passing legislation that protects all of its citizens against the imminent dangers of AI.”
Hollywood celebrities, including “Star Wars” star Mark Hamill, director J.J. Abrams and SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher sign a letter urging Gov. Gavin Newsom to sign AI safety bill SB 1047.
She concluded her missive: “I urge the US government to make the passing of legislation limiting AI use a top priority; it is a bipartisan issue that enormously affects the immediate future of humanity at large.”
Celebrities including Taylor Swift, Tom Hanks and Morgan Freeman also have had their likenesses and voices ripped off via artificial intelligence in recent years.
Bejerano did not immediately reply to The Times when contacted via Facebook on Wednesday.
Times staff writer Wendy Lee contributed to this report.
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