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Louise Thomas
Editor
Netflix subscribers are complaining about the use of artificial intelligence in the streamer’s latest hit docuseries.
Dirty Pop: The Boyband Scam was released on Netflix on Wednesday (24 July), with the three-part series rapidly rising to No 1 in the UK’s Top 10 TV shows.
Despite the documentary’s popularity, however, viewers have taken issue with its use of AI to replicate the voice and image of its subject, the late Lou Pearlman.
Dirty Pop chronicles the rise and fall of Pearlman, the creator of iconic Nineties boy bands such as Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC.
In 2016, the former talent manager died in federal custody aged 62, after pleading guilty to conspiracy, money laundering, and making false statements during bankruptcy proceedings.
Within the three minutes of episode one, viewers are informed that they will see digitally altered footage of Pearlman narrating his writings across the series.
“This footage has been digitally altered to generate his voice and synchronise his lips,” reads a message on the screen. “The words were written by Lou in his book, Bands, Brands & Billions.”
Several viewers complained about the decision to use AI and shared their thoughts on X/Twitter.
to whoever decided to make ai lou pearlman the narrator of this dirty pop documentary on netflix, i hope you step on a lego. this is embarrassing
— jessica (@jessicalynne) July 24, 2024
Watching the Dirty Pop documentary. So far so good but the use of the AI generated voice is not necessary.
— Alexis Todd-Dinac (@AlexisToddNY) July 25, 2024
Really hope this doesn’t become a trend - won’t be able to tell what’s real and what’s fake anymore
“To whoever decided to make AI Lou Pearlman the narrator of this Dirty Pop documentary on Netflix, I hope you step on a lego, this is embarrassing,” wrote one person.
Another called the use of AI “so off-putting and terrible” that they will not finish the series. “It makes the doc actively worse and it’s super distracting!” they said. “Why even bother?”
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“Watching the Dirty Pop documentary. So far so good but the use of the AI generated voice is not necessary,” wrote a third person. “Really hope this doesn’t become a trend – won’t be able to tell what’s real and what’s fake anymore.”
Tried watching the Dirty Pop doc on @netflix but the AI Lou Pearlman thing is so off putting & terrible I’m not finishing it. It makes the doc actively worse and it’s super distracting! Why even bother? What’s the point? Were they paid to use it? I don’t get it at all.
— Jerry Roe (Blu-Check) (@JerryRoe) July 26, 2024
“I’m not looking at that for three hours,” said another of the digitally altered version of Pearlman.
Someone else commented: “I can’t stop cringing every time the AI pops up. I don’t get what they were thinking there.”
In a new interview for Netflix, published on Saturday (27 July), executive producer Michael Johnson said: “We secured Lou’s life rights; we only used words written by Lou himself; we hired an actor to deliver those words; we used real footage of Lou in order to capture his true mannerisms and body language; and we hired AI experts from MIT Media Lab, Pinscreen, and Resemble AI to execute our vision.”
Explaining his decision to use AI, Johnson added: “It was important for us to convey the words written in Lou’s book in this way because his writing is a reflection of his reality and the reality that he wanted everyone to believe.
“With the AI spread across the series, the viewer gets to experience the difference between Lou’s reality and the reality that the rest of the world experienced. This juxtaposition is essential to understanding Lou as a human being as well as a devious con man.”
Dirty Pop features interviews with members of Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC about their troubled relationship with Pearlman.
Both bands parted ways with him publicly, claiming that they had not been properly compensated for their success despite their record-breaking sales.
In 1998, Backstreet Boys sued Pearlman, alleging that they had only earned $300,000 since 1993 while he pocketed $10m, according to Forbes.
The following year, in 1999, *NSYNC also sued the talent manager in order to get out of their original contract with his record company, Trans Continental Records.
Both bands eventually severed ties with Pearlman, who ran into further legal trouble when he was discovered to be running one of the largest Ponzi schemes in American history.
In 2008, Pearlman was sentenced to 25 years in prison for stealing more than $300m from investors. He died of cardiac arrest eight years later while in federal custody in Miami.
Speaking of Pearlman’s death in the documentary, *NSYNC’s Chris Kirkpatrick said: “I think we should remember Lou as a crook who got what he deserved in the end, and there are people that are still in pain and hurting because of his actions.”
