Hollywood talent agencies are holding talks to represent Tilly Norwood, an AI-generated performer who could soon become the first artificial actress formally signed by an agent.
The move signals how artificial intelligence is rapidly pushing into the entertainment industry, reigniting debates that were central to the 2023 actors' and writers' strikes.
Tilly Norwood is the creation of actor, comedian, and technologist Eline van der Velden through her AI talent studio Xicoia. Speaking at the Zurich Summit, van der Velden revealed that industry scepticism has shifted quickly.
"We were in a lot of boardrooms around February time, and everyone was like, 'No, this is nothing. It's not going to happen.' Then, by May, people were like, 'We need to do something with you guys.'"
She added that an announcement of which agency will represent Tilly is expected within months. Reactions online have been mixed. Some users labelled the development "bleak" and warned of science fiction — style scenarios.
Others dismissed such concerns and welcomed experimentation. Calls for boycotts also surfaced, underlining the unease surrounding AI stepping into roles traditionally held by human actors.
Tilly has been presented as a London-based actress with a growing social media presence and an AI-generated video introduction. According to van der Velden, the character was developed with 10 different tools, including ChatGPT.
She is trained to "perform with nuance, emotion, and consistency." In a public statement addressing criticism, van der Velden described Tilly not as a substitute for human actors but as a creative experiment.
"She is not a replacement for a human being, but a creative work – a piece of art," she wrote. "AI offers another way to imagine and build stories. I'm an actor myself, and nothing — certainly not an AI character — can take away the craft or joy of human performance."
She compared AI characters to earlier innovations such as animation, puppetry, and CGI, arguing that each opened new storytelling possibilities without erasing live acting. Creating Tilly, she said, was "an act of imagination and craftsmanship," representing experimentation rather than substitution.
Van der Velden urged that AI characters be judged on their own merits rather than directly against human performers. "When we celebrate all forms of creativity, we open doors to new voices, new stories, and new ways of connecting with each other," she concluded.
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