Opinion: Truth mirrors fiction in Hollywood strike

Have you seen the television show “Black Mirror?” If you haven’t, think “Twilight Zone” but with a modern twist.

Each episode is self-contained and presents a dystopian, fictional world meant to point a mirror on our own reality, often in horrifying and striking ways. The show also is eerily good with predictions.

That’s even more the case than usual with the latest season of “Black Mirror,” which dropped in June on Netflix.

The first episode of the sixth season, called “Joan Is Awful,” has me thinking about artificial intelligence and the roles the entertainment industry plays in our society – due to real-world events.

In the episode, a woman’s life becomes the subject of a TV show against her will. She forgot to read the terms of service of a Netflix-like platform, leading to her fate. Celebrity likenesses are used in place of “real life” characters, and AI plays a major role. In the in-episode TV show, writers are not necessary, and actors are used only for their likenesses and voice patterns.

The episode was fine – not my favorite of the season – but I really hadn’t given it much more thought until actors recently joined writers on strike in Hollywood.

One of the key sticking points is fear by movie and TV workers that AI might replace them.

Actress Fran Drescher, president of the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, has suggested that “the entire business model has been changed” by streaming and that AI likely will change it further, according to a report by The New York Times.

“This is a moment in history – a moment of truth,” she said. “At some point, you have to say, ‘No, we’re not going to take this anymore.’”

With the rapid adaptation of AI, its use in entertainment media generation is no longer science fiction. It has actually already been done, though the technology remains in its infancy.

Bits from “Seinfeld” and “The Simpsons” have been used by Twitch content creators to launch AI-generated episodes that often deviate from the source material. Given ChatGPT’s writing prowess, it’s not that big of a stretch into full-fledged TV shows and movies created largely by AI.

Drescher and SAG-AFTRA are right to be concerned. Most professionals should be concerned, regardless of their industry.

If AI can be used to replace human workers less expensively, you can bet corporations will make that investment.

That’s unless human beings force policy changes that cement their place in the equation now and into the future. I’m standing in solidarity with Hollywood actors and writers on this one. 

The speed at which AI is moving means action on the topic can’t be reactionary. Proactive policies are crucial.

There’s likely a middle ground where AI is used to enhance human-created works and human jobs, rather than replace them.

That’s the marker we should aim for, but we need to be quick about it.

Springfield Business Journal Digital Editor Geoff Pickle can be reached at gpickle@sbj.net.