Emma Thompson blasts AI as an “intense irritation”
Emma Thompson has blasted the use of AI in the film industry as an “intense irritation”, before adding, “Will you just fuck off?”.
The actor made the comments in a new interview on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, in which she said the technology was a huge hindrance and annoyance compared to her more classic, preferred style of writing.
Calling AI an “Intense irritation. I cannot begin to tell you,” Thompson said she particularly hates the technology, “because I write longhand on a pad. Old script, actually. Because I believe that there’s a connection between the brain and the hand.”
Thompson, who is currently starring as a private investigator in the new English crime drama Down Cemetery Road for Apple TV+, went on to add how she has noticed the subtle changes that the introduction of AI into everyday technology could potentially affect her writing process.
“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?’” she continued. “And so, I just end up going, ‘I don’t need you to fucking rewrite what I’ve just written. Will you fuck off? Just fuck off.’ I’m so annoyed.”
Thompson is not the only person across the worlds of film and music to have recently spoken out against the threat of AI, with prolific director Werner Herzog having also criticised the technology by saying films that use it “look completely dead”.
Additionally, in the music realm, last month a litany of stars including Paul McCartney, Elton John, and Kate Bush all signed an open letter to the UK prime minister Keir Starmer, imploring the government to object to an AI trade deal with the US.
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