Harrison Ford: ‘Indiana Jones’ Game Voice Actor Shows You Don’t Need AI to ‘Steal My Soul’

In a recent interview, sci-fi acting legend Harrison Ford spoke out about AI and how little a threat it poses to actors.

Ford told WSJ that he did not feel artificial intelligence will be able to steal the jobs of actors anytime soon, pointing out that it just can’t replace the quality that actors offer.

When asked in the interview if he was taking steps to secure his likeness—in the wake of so many studios getting closer to having fully synthetic versions of the talent—the Indiana Jones and Han Solo actor said: “You don’t need artificial intelligence to steal my soul. You can already do it for nickels and dimes with good ideas and talent. He did a brilliant job and it didn’t take AI to do it.”

The “he” Ford was referring to is video game voice actor Troy Baker, who managed to do a very convincing impersonation of his portrayal of Indiana Jones without any assistance from AI.

Despite this performance, other actors are not so calm in the face of the AI future.

Nicholas Cage has already famously warned that AI “wants to take your instrument”, while Robert Downey Jr. has said he will sue all executives who create his AI digital replica.

Horror film “Heretic” even went so far as to feature a disclaimer at its start, making clear that no AI was used in the making of the feature. Its co-director Bryan Woods says AI is “​​not human and it’s borderline theft on some level.”

Still, the writing strikes led to some studios using AI to replace voice acting. For example, the technology was used in the award-winning movie “The Brutalist”—and some argued it actually enhanced the voice and end result.

One technology used in this and the movie Emilia Perez, called Respeacher, was praised for enhancing the vocal range of actors. Its creators say: “We developed Respeecher as an auxiliary tool that helps voice actors scale, monetize, and secure their voices. One of our guiding principles is ‘Empower, not replace.'”

Speaking on his future and that of acting and AI, Ford told WSJ: “my plan is to keep working behind that face till I don’t care what happens anymore,” and, “there won’t be any need for me. There’s somebody behind me. Doing what I did.”

Edited by Stacy Elliott.