Mrs Doubtfire star Matthew Lawrence has said he would “love” to revive Robin Williams’s voice using artificial intelligence software.
The 45-year-old actor starred as Williams’s onscreen son Chris Hillard in the 1993 family comedy based on Anne Fine’s novel, Madame Doubtfire.
Williams died by suicide in 2014, aged 63, after being diagnosed with Lewy body dementia. Speaking to Entertainment Weekly at Comic-Con, Lawrence said “with the respect and with the OK” from Williams’s family, he would love to “do something really special” with the actor’s voice.
He explained: “I know for a generation, that voice is just so iconic. It’s not just the fact that I knew him and worked with him and so it’s in my head – it’s in everybody’s head. And it would be so cool.”
Williams lent his voice to numerous animated films throughout his career, taking on the role of the Genie in Disney’s Aladdin in 1992, Fender Pinwheeler in Robots in 2005, and Ramon and Lovelace in Happy Feet in 2006.
However, the actor’s natural baritone had a warmth and depth that made it equally beloved by fans as his physical performances in films including Dead Poets Society, Hook and Jumanji.
Cultural figures, including artist Andy Warhol and Top Gun star Val Kilmer, have previously been resurrected using AI with the permission of their estate.
Lawrence said he’d like to embark on a project where Williams’s voice is resurrected by AI to “be the voice of AI” itself. “He’s gotta be the voice in something,” he said. “So yeah, I would love to do that.”
It comes after Lawrence told Entertainment Weekly back in April that “not a day goes by” that he doesn’t hear Williams’s voice. “I hear it every day, in my head,” he said.
The star revealed Williams – who struggled with drug and alcohol abuse – warned him on the set of Mrs Doubtfire never to touch substances.
“There were times he would just grab me and he'd be like, ‘Don't put that stuff in your body,” he said. “If I could go back and tell myself, this is why I'm telling you, don't put that stuff in your body.’”
