Top Indian actor wins landmark case against AI

Anil Kapoor, one of India's leading actors and most recognizable faces, has just won a landmark ruling against artificial intelligence.

Kapoor, who has appeared in over 100 films including Slumdog Millionaire and most recently, Thank You For Coming, filed a suit in Delhi High Court for protection of his personality rights. This includes his name, image, voice, and any other attributes of his likeness.

As reported by Variety, the court granted an order on Wednesday which acknowledged the actor's personality rights and restraining others from "misusing" his attributes without permission. The order applies to the actor's rights globally, across media formats.

Kapoor praised the order, telling Variety, "I think it’s very progressive and great for not only me but for other actors also." He added that AI can be "misused commercially" and that the ruling protects him from various usage, including GIFs and deepfakes, but it's unclear how enforceable this will be. Kapoor took his case to court in the first place thanks to a number of morphed videos containing a well-known phrase used by the actor in his 1985 film, Yudh. The phrase is also now protected by the court order.

Kapoor, who is also represented in Hollywood by Artist International Group, voiced his support for fellow actors and artists in the midst of the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) strike. and Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike.

"I feel their rights should be protected, because everybody, big, small, popular, not popular, every actor has the right to protect themselves and their rights," he told Variety.

For both actors and writers, AI is a core concern and a major point of contention in the ongoing Hollywood strikes. Aside from protesting unfair pay and streaming compensation, Hollywood continues to take a stance against the increased and suggested use of AI by major movie and TV studios.