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Babylon's Jean Smart and Margot Robbie on perils of deepfakes

Writer and director Damien Chazelle's latest film, Babylon, is set during a time of great upheaval in Hollywood: the dawn of the "talkie" and the end of the silent era.

So in the spirit of the movie, EW asked the cast what they think the next big shift in the industry will be. Most everyone expressed concern about deepfakes, which utilize artificial intelligence to digitally replace the likeness of one person with another.

Margot Robbie, who was joined by costars Diego Calva, Brad Pitt, Jean Smart, Jovan Adepo, and Li Jun Li for EW's Around the Table video series, said she and Calva were just talking about the worrisome technology recently. "And we're like, are they just going to take our faces, and we won't even be going to work anymore?" she said. "So creepy," added Pitt.

Smart had a different take on it. "Or after you're dead, they'll go, 'Oh, let's put Margot Robbie in that movie' — a hundred years from now, having her doing God knows what. And your estate will have to sue them. It'll be horrible, Margot."

Smart went on to say that she's already been disturbed by the industry "putting Marilyn Monroe in TV commercials, and Fred Astaire dancing in Coke commercials."

The Hacks star, who plays Hollywood columnist Elinor St. John in Babylon, added that, for her part, she's not okay with her likeness being used in deepfakes after she's dead. "Unless my kids are getting rich off it. Of course. In that case, then it's all right," she quips. Her one condition, though? "I don't want to be in a year 3000 porn."

Babylon is now playing in theaters. For more with the cast of the film, watch the video above and check out the full conversation here.

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Tandra Barner

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