Cox, 77, told AFP that the use of artificial intelligence in the entertainment industry was a really severe’ threat that needed to be stopped.
Friday, “Succession” actor Brian Cox led hundreds of British actors in a demonstration in support of striking American actors protesting low pay and the “existential threat” posed by artificial intelligence.
Imelda Staunton, Simon Pegg, Hayley Atwell, and Jim Carter from Downton Abbey attended the rally in London’s Leicester Square, where last week’s premiere of the new “Barbie” film took place.
In solidarity with the Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA), actors chanted “Luvvies united will never be defeated” and brandished banners from the UK’s Equity union.
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Last week, approximately 160,000 American film and television actors walked off the job, joining writers who have been on strike for weeks.
The union’s demands have centered on declining compensation in the streaming era and the threat posed by artificial intelligence.
The strike is the first industry-wide boycott in the United States in 63 years, and it has effectively shut down Hollywood.
The 77-year-old Scottish actor Cox, who portrays media magnate Logan Roy in the hit HBO drama “Succession,” told AFP that the entertainment industry’s use of artificial intelligence poses a “very serious” threat that must be stopped.
“It’s just the tip of the iceberg,” he said, “because our image is so strong and they can do whatever they want with those images.”
“They cannot do as they please with them, nor should they be permitted to. We will halt it,” he continued.
In 1980, over the advent of pay television and personal video, the US actors union went on strike for over three months.
This time, the union claims that their pay has been “severely eroded” by streaming services and has warned that artificial intelligence poses an “existential threat.”
