Scarlett Johansson calls for AI laws after fake video of celebrities condemning Kanye West’s antisemitism goes viral

Scarlett Johansson, seen here in 2024, is calling for AI laws after a fake video of celebrities widely circulated on social media this week. (Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP via CNN Newsource)

Scarlett Johansson is condemning antisemitism and calling for legislation to protect the public from artificial intelligence after a deepfake video of her and other celebrities, created with the technology, widely circulated on social media this week.

The AI video showed an image of Johansson in a T-shirt emblazoned with a hand and middle finger extended, a Jewish star and Kanye West’s name. Though fake, the video implied she and others were responding to West’s most recent antisemitic remarks and a swastika shirt he was selling on his Yeezy website, before it was pulled down by Shopify.

“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,” Johansson said in a statement obtained by CNN. “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.”

Johansson’s statement continued, “I have unfortunately been a very public victim of AI, but the truth is that the threat of AI affects each and every one of us. There is a 1000 foot wave coming regarding AI that several progressive countries, not including the United States, have responded to in a responsible manner. It is terrifying that the US government is paralyzed when it comes to passing legislation that protects all of its citizens against the imminent dangers of AI.”

The fake video also included AI-generated imagery of Adam Levine, Mila Kunis, Lenny Kravitz, Mark Zuckerberg, Sacha Baron Cohen, Ben Stiller, Natalie Portman, David Schwimmer and others, set to “Hava Nagila,” a Jewish folk song that is typically played at celebratory cultural events.

Johansson has been one of the most vocal celebrities to take a stand the use of AI without consent. Last year, the Marvel star lawyered up in a fight against OpenAI as she spoke out about a synthetic voice “eerily similar” to hers being used for ChatGPT.

In her statement on Wednesday, Johansson called on elected officials to take legislative action against AI abuses.

“I urge the U.S government to make the passing of legislation limiting AI use a top priority,” she said. “It is a bipartisan issue that enormously affects the immediate future of humanity at large.”

The AI video was created by Ori Bejerano, who describes himself as a generative AI expert on his Instagram bio. His original post of the video includes a notice that reads, “This content was digitally crated or altered with AI to seem real.”

“It’s time to stop being silent and response to antisemites like Kanye West in the strongest way possible,” Bejerano’s Instagram caption, written in Hebrew and translated to English by CNN, read in part. “We must demand from the social networks to stop giving stage to antisemitism and hatred.”

While Johansson is the only celebrity in the fake video to speak out against the use of AI so far, some others have previously spoken out against West.

Over the weekend, before his Super Bowl ad aired, “Friends” star Schwimmer pleaded with Elon Musk to block West from X.

“We can’t stop a deranged bigot from spewing hate filled, ignorant bile… but we CAN stop giving him a megaphone, Mr. Musk,” Schwimmer wrote on Instagram. “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.”

West, who now goes by Ye, deactivated his X account late Sunday night.

Hen Mazzig, co-founder of the Tel Aviv Institute, an organization that works to combat Jewish hate and misinformation across social media, weighed in on the AI video.

“Misusing AI is dangerous, no doubt,” Mazzig wrote on X. “But you know what’s even more dangerous? Unchecked antisemitic hate being platformed to millions every single day.”

Article written by Elizabeth Wagmeister, CNN