I saw a few things this morning that I never thought I would. Olivia Colman and Jay-Z kicking back on a sofa together. Greta Thunberg wearing a “I heart Southend on Sea” t shirt. Kim Kardashian and Ariana Grande in high vis vests. Adele looking cross in a fleece, with a lanyard around her neck. The list goes on.
All of these surreal sights were in the trailer for ITV’s bonkers (and surely legally questionable?!) new series Deep Fake Neighbour Wars.
It’s being billed as a comedy impressions show, which will drop on the broadcaster’s new streaming service, ITVX, in January 2023.
The six-parter is, according to ITV, “the world’s first long form narrative show that uses Deep Fake technology to turn the UK’s best new impressionists into the world’s most famous celebrities”.
In the show, which looks like it’s shot in a mockumentary style, stars from Tom Holland to Chris Rock are depicted as ordinary people embroiled in disputes with their neighbours.
Some of the deep fakes are eerily convincing, others – I’m looking at you, silver-haired Stormzy and a version of Harry Kane that doesn’t resemble a human being – seem to have been dropped a few times on the factory floor.
The only dialogue that has been revealed so far doesn’t offer many clues as to the storylines we can expect, either. A strangely youthful Jay-Z says: “Technology... incredible” for no apparent reason. A slightly bloated Matthew McConaughey tells the camera: “Alright, alright, alright. Now we are having fun.”
It remains to be seen what this show means for the future of authenticity, of truth, heck, of humanity! All we know, for now, is that it’s probably the most disturbing thing you’ll watch all day.
