Emma Thompson’s thoughts about AI have gone viral online. The actress blasted artificial intelligence and machine learning during an episode of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. It seems like a lot of people online totally agreed with Thompson’s assessment of the technology. As a screenwriter, she’s spending a ton of time with different texts. Despite claims that AI makes writing easier, the Oscar-winner couldn’t dream of using it more broadly. After all, that screenplay for Sense & Sensibility carried a lot of her DNA inside its pages.
Winning a BAFTA means that we’re going to take your assessments about writing and storycraft pretty seriously. All the stuff Thompson lays out in her estimation of AI is something more people could stand to hear when tempted by this technology. Refining your own writing is fine, but when the machine starts to guide your hand a little bit too much, the results can be less than desirable. It’s about finding that balance.
“I write long hand on a pad, old script actually, because I believe that there is a connection between the brain and the hand,” Thompson told Colbert. “And then when I’ve written something, I will put it into a Word document. And recently, the Word document is constantly saying, ‘Would you like me to rewrite that for you?’ And so I end up just saying, ‘I don’t need you to rewrite what I’ve just written, will you f*** off?! Just f*** off!’ I’m so annoyed.”
Emma Thompson would rather die than use AI to write
Colbert wanted to dig into the subject a little deeper. So, Emma Thompson ended up giving the audience a little window into her feelings about writing. Especially, what makes writing successful versus the flattening effect AI has on prose. There’s some real meat there, and probably good advice for just about any creative endeavor. People’s work gets noticed not completely by algorithms, but by viewers, readers, and fans taking notice in what you’re putting into the world.
As more of Hollywood’s leadership becomes entranced by AI, though conspicuously few of the actual creatives take the bait, the calls for the technology’s harmlessness will be amplified. But, Thompson is remaining steadfastly against its use. More creatives will likely do the same in the coming months. It’s already started with that nonsense about an “AI actress” recently. Get ready for more of that messiness coming up in Hollywood too.
(featured image: CBS)
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