Amazon accused of using artificial intelligence to ‘reproduce voices’ of actors in Road House remake

Amazon is being sued by the screenwriter of the original 1989 film version, Patrick Swayze Road House for alleged copyright infringement in the remake of the film, Los Angeles Times has reported. Screenwriter R. Lance Hill is accusing Amazon and MGM Studios of using AI to clone the voices of actors in the new production in order to finish it before the copyright expires.

Hill said he filed a petition with the US Copyright Office in November 2021 to regain the rights to his original screenplay, which is the basis of the new film. At that point, the rights were owned by Amazon Studios, as part of the MGM acquisition, but were set to expire in November 2023. Hill claims that once that happens, the rights will revert back to him.

According to the lawsuit, Amazon Studios nevertheless rushed the project to finish it before the copyright deadline. Because he was prevented from striking the actor, Hill claimed that Amazon used AI to “replicate the voices” of the actors who worked on the 2024 remake. Such use violates the terms of the deal struck between the union and the major studios. including Amazon.

The claim is complicated by the fact that Hill signed a “work for hire” contract with the original producer, United Artists. This effectively means that the studio that hires the writer will be both the owner and copyright holder of the work. However, Hill dismissed this as a “template” commonly used in contracts.

The lawsuit aims to block the release of the film, which is set to bow at SXSW on March 8 before (contradictory) is headed straight to streaming on Prime Video on March 21.

Amazon denies the claims, a spokesperson said On the edge that “the studio specifically instructed the filmmakers NOT to use AI in this film.” He added that if AI was used, it was only done in the early versions of the films. The filmmakers were later told to remove any “AI or non-SAG AFTRA actors” for the final cut. He added that other claims were “categorically false” and that he believed the copyright to the original was his Road House it hasn’t expired yet.