Deepfake tech puts words into late chef Anthony Bourdains mouth in new film sparking debate as widow denies she okayed it
Artificially generated âdeepfakeâ audio used to replicate Anthony Bourdainâs voice in a new documentary has triggered backlash, as the celeb chefâs widow says she did not sign off on the AI voice, contrary to the directorâs claim.
The new film on Bourdainâs life, âRoadrunnerâ, premiered on Friday, but was quickly overshadowed by controversy after director Morgan Neville let slip that some portions of the documentary narrated in Bourdainâs voice were generated by artificial intelligence, also known as âdeepfakeâ technology.
While Neville later insisted that he approached Bourdainâs widow, Ottavia, and his literary executor âto make sure they were coolâ with the decision, the chefâs estranged spouse took Twitter on Friday night to deny that claim, saying, âI certainly was NOT the one who said Tony would have been cool with that.â
Though âRoadrunnerâ features less than 60 seconds of faked audio, and only narrates Bourdainâs words taken from his own writings and emails, the fact Neville used AI to effectively speak for the dead did not sit well with critics online. Some even demanded a boycott of the new documentary.
âAnthony Bourdain was very intentional about the words he chose and very particular about how he said them, so for a documentary to artificially use his voice is deeply f***ed,â wrote one irked observer.
I saw a clip and was like NOPE. It feels like cashing in on his life instead of celebrating it. Just feels wrong.
â" Sabaah Jauhar-Rizvi (@AustenLied) July 16, 2021Thatâs what I figured. The piece-of-shit documentary in question is âRoadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdainâ and I encourage yâall to boycott it. https://t.co/JUIcZ44Fee
â" Clarkisha Kent (@IWriteAllDay_) July 16, 2021With the exception of one line excerpted from a Bourdain email before his 2018 suicide, Neville has kept mum about exactly what dialogue was faked, telling the New Yorker, âyou probably donât know what the other lines are that were spoken by the AI, and youâre not going to know.â He added, âWe can have a documentary-ethics panel about it later.â
Impatient critics decided to hold their own âethics panelâ sooner than later, however, and many voiced deep moral qualms about faking a dead manâs voice. Some argued the use of Bourdainâs private correspondence crossed yet another line, while a third objection came over the fact that âRoadrunnerâ does not disclose its use of deepfake tech to viewers.
âThis producerâs attitude is unethical and disgusting,â another user said, apparently referring to director Neville. âDeepfaking Bourdain and deliberately not informing the audience in whatâs supposed to be a serious documentary. Then hiding behind the skirt of âthe familyâ to excuse your behavior...â
The unethical part is not the AI; it is the incorporation of emails that were not intended to be public.
â" Supreme Court Review (@SupremeCourtRev) July 15, 2021That Morgan Neville doesn't alert the audience that they're listening to a simulated voice and not #Bourdain seals the deal for me. This is creepy and unethical. https://t.co/05puBsTeWl
â" ð ð¢ðð«ðð ððð¦ð ð'ð (@northeast_mama) July 16, 2021Perhaps best known for his food-centered globetrotting â" captured in hit TV shows âNo Reservationsâ and âParts Unknownâ â" Bourdain made his television debut with 2002âs âA Cookâs Tourâ, which ran for 35 episodes and provided a model for his later, more successful programs. He also published several bestselling books, beginning in 2000 with âKitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbellyâ. Bourdain took his own life in June 2018 while on location in France to film for âParts Unknownâ, leaving behind widow Ottavia, from whom he was separated in 2016, the coupleâs daughter, Ariane, and his partner Asia Argento.
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