Lisa Kudrow Slams Tom Hanks’ ‘Here’ as an 'Endorsement For AI'

I argued about AI with an old high school friend over a year ago. He said that AI was the way of the future; “The toothpaste can’t go back into the tube.” He’s not wrong in the sense that AI won’t disappear. Since it is a product to be sold, its sellers push the toothpaste example as a sales tactic. Regardless, people can choose not to use it. It will mostly depend on how good the sellers are at forcing it on folks. However, they will have plenty of help as people continue normalizing its use for creative purposes.

Pushing AI extends beyond Silicon Valley dweebs who want to keep people from interacting with each other so they feel more normal. Artificial Intelligence is being force-fed to us for things we do not need it for. It can finish our sentences, sum up our favorite shows, and create absurd pictures for everyone to get mad at Madonna for. The snag is that people are using it. It’s out there so much that it has begun to feel normal. Despite several whole-ass entertainment strikes about the issue, Tom Hanks bragged about using it recently.

“Anybody can now recreate themselves at any age they are by way of AI or deep fake technology … I could be hit by a bus tomorrow and that’s it, but my performances can go on and on and on,” Hanks said while promoting his new film Here. “Outside of the understanding that it’s been done by AI or deepfake, there’ll be nothing to tell you that it’s not me and me alone and it’s going to have some degree of lifelike quality.” Not only is it disappointing to hear America’s Dad say this, but he’s also skating over a pretty major detail.

While Hanks mentions an “understanding” that something will be AI, plenty of the losers pushing AI are banking on the exact opposite. They constantly pitch the product as being “so good you won’t notice” because it’s easier to dehumanize the people it’s replacing that way. The only way the grift works is if people are less informed. This is why Hanks promoting Artificial Intelligence actually works against the film’s appeal (among other factors). Regardless, Lisa Kudrow is not on board.

The Friends actor recently appeared on the Armchair Expert podcast and commented on Here’s use of AI. “They shot it, and they could actually shoot the scene and then look at the playback of them as younger, and it’s ready for them to see,” she noted. “And all I got from that was, this is an endorsement for AI and oh, my God. It’s not like, ‘Oh, it’s going to ruin everything,’ but what will be left? Forget actors, what about up-and-coming actors? They’ll just be licensing and recycling.” Preach, Lisa!

There are many ways that AI is detrimental to art, but the same movies and shows being regurgitated over and over are way up there. That’s inherent in what is essentially a plagiarism machine. It will also be detrimental to human connection. People still like to discuss things they’ve watched with each other. There is wonder in shared experiences, even if those are getting more niche. But the doofuses behind Generative AI want you to make shows and movies starring yourself. How will those conversations go?

“Hey, did you watch Me last night?”

“Oh, no, I was watching the season finale of Me.”

*Both people return to their studio pods out in the lithium mines.*