Scarlett Johansson has spoken out after her likeness was used in a viral fake AI video showing Jewish celebrities giving Kanye West the finger.
The Black Widow star was just one of many Jewish celebrities whose likenesses were used without their permission in the clip, alongside the likes of David Schwimmer, Steven Spielberg, Jerry Seinfeld, Adam Sandler and Sacha Baron Cohen.
They are depicted wearing a white T-shirt showing a hand containing a Star of David with the middle finger raised above the word “KANYE.”
West sparked outrage this week when it emerged his website Yeezy.com, which he advertised during the Super Bowl, only sold one product: a white T-shirt emblazoned with a swastika. The site was taken down by Shopify on Tuesday over policy violations.
In a statement to People, Johansson outlined her objections to the deepfake video regardless of its intentions: “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. 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.”
The creator of the fake AI-generated video is unknown.
Some of the celebrities depicted in the video have separately spoken out about West’s actions. Friends star Schwimmer wrote in an Instagram post alongside images of West declaring himself a Nazi: “This is so 2022. We can’t stop a deranged bigot from spewing hate filled, ignorant bile… but we CAN stop giving him a megaphone, Mr. Musk. Kanye West has 32.7 million followers on your platform, X. That’s twice as many people than the number of Jews in existence.
“His sick hate speech results in REAL LIFE violence against Jews. I don’t know what’s worse, the fact that he identifies as a Nazi (which implies he wants to exterminate ALL marginalized communities including his own) or the fact that there is not sufficient OUTRAGE to remove and ban him from all social media at this point. Silence is complicity.”
Isla Fisher, who is also depicted in the video, wrote on her own Instagram Stories: “Hey friends, can you please unfollow Kanye? Did you know this is the only thing for sale on his website after placing a Super Bowl commercial? F*** this monster forever. No Tolerance for this s***.”
