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Freedom251 › Blog › Actors

How Actors Can Protect Their Voice and Likeness From Unauthorized AI Use

By Freedom251 Team · · 9 min read

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The most reliable protection is layered: get a precise, written permission for every AI recording or replica, limit the media, purpose, territory and term, negotiate compensation and deletion, and have an entertainment lawyer or applicable union review the language before you sign. State laws, union contracts and ordinary publicity, contract and unfair-use claims can overlap, but none creates one universal rule for every actor or every use.

What “voice replica,” “digital replica” and “likeness” mean

A voice replica is an AI-generated performance designed to sound like you. A digital replica can reproduce your voice, face, body, movements or a combination of them, using recordings, scans, motion-capture data or other performance material. “Likeness” is broader: it can include recognizable visual identity and other aspects of your persona, depending on the law and contract involved.

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These terms matter because permission to record you is not necessarily permission to generate new dialogue, alter your appearance, advertise a different product, train a model, license the output to another company or replace you in a future paid performance. Treat capture, generation, editing, distribution and later reuse as separate decisions unless the agreement clearly connects them.

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Why protection depends on more than one law

An actor’s options depend on several facts: the country and state involved, whether the performer is living or deceased, whether the work is covered by a union agreement, whether the use is commercial, what the signed contract says, and whether the replica substitutes for services the actor would otherwise perform. A state publicity-right claim, a breach-of-contract claim, an agreement-based union remedy and a claim involving misleading commercial use may have different elements and remedies.

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There is no single national checklist that determines liability. A clause that is enforceable in one production or jurisdiction may not answer what happens in another. Keep the governing law, production location, employer, distributor and intended audience in view when evaluating a proposed use.

California’s 2024 laws: important scope limits

AB 2602 and contracts for a performer’s replica

On September 17, 2024, California Governor Gavin Newsom announced the signing of Assembly Bill 2602. The Governor’s description says the law addresses contracts authorizing AI-generated digital replicas of a performer’s voice or likeness. In covered circumstances, the contract must describe the intended uses with reasonable specificity and the performer must have professional representation by counsel or a labor union when negotiating the contract. Read the statute and the actual agreement together; the announcement does not mean that every AI use requires consent under AB 2602 or that every performer receives identical protection.

The policy goal was described by California Assemblymember Ash Kalra this way: “While this bill was informed by negotiations during the historic strike by SAG-AFTRA, AB 2602 shows how California can strike the right balance between AI innovation and protecting workers in the digital age.” That is a policy statement, not a complete description of every legal effect. The Governor’s announcement is available at California’s official bill announcement.

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AB 1836 and deceased performers

Assembly Bill 1836 concerns certain commercial uses of a deceased performer’s digital replica. The Governor’s announcement describes a consent requirement involving the appropriate rights holder or estate within the law’s scope. This is a postmortem protection; it is not the main rule for a living actor deciding whether to sign a replica clause. Estate representatives should confirm which jurisdiction’s publicity-right rules apply and what authorization or registration steps are required before licensing or challenging a replica.

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SAG-AFTRA protections apply to covered work

SAG-AFTRA’s AI materials describe protections for covered performers that include informed or clear-and-conspicuous consent and information about the specific intended use of a digital voice replica. The union’s 2023 TV/theatrical contract resources explain replica-consent and related terms, while its living AI member resource points members to current guidance.

Those safeguards attach to the agreement governing the production. A SAG-AFTRA member working on a covered project should check the exact contract, side letter, rider and notice procedure. A nonmember, or an actor on a noncovered production, should not assume that union language automatically applies. The Congressional Research Service summarizes the 2023 agreement’s clear-and-conspicuous-consent and reasonably specific use-description provisions, while noting exceptions; see its legal sidebar on digital replicas.

Federal protection is still developing

The U.S. Copyright Office said in its July 31, 2024 announcement that existing protections had gaps and recommended that Congress enact a federal law protecting all individuals from the knowing distribution of unauthorized digital replicas. That recommendation is an assessment and policy proposal, not itself a federal cause of action. Read the Office’s announcement at copyright.gov/newsnet/2024/1048.html.

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The NO FAKES Act of 2025 appeared in the 119th Congress as introduced legislation, including S. 1367’s introduced text. An introduced bill is not enacted law. Its status, and any later version, must be checked in the official congressional record before relying on it. State law and court decisions can also change, so a time-sensitive dispute requires a current, jurisdiction-specific review.

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What to negotiate before you record, scan or sign

Do not treat “AI rights,” “synthetic media” or “future technologies” as self-explanatory. Ask the producer to identify each permission in operational terms and put the answer in the agreement or a signed rider.

1. Identify the material being captured

  • Will the production record dialogue, isolated vocal samples, singing, accents, screams, improvisation, facial expressions, body movement, body scans or performance-capture data?
  • Will the material be used only for the named project, or also to train, fine-tune or test a model?
  • Does the permission cover raw files, cleaned files, metadata and derived embeddings, or only the final scene?

2. Demand a concrete use description

Ask for the project title, character, media (such as a film, series, game, advertisement or social post), territory, language, campaign, term and distribution channels. Ask whether the replica can be modified, combined with another performer, transferred to an affiliate or licensee, sublicensed, used in new episodes or reused in a different project. “All media now known or later developed” may be far broader than the session you are booking.

Specificity is central to California AB 2602 within its covered circumstances and to the SAG-AFTRA provisions described above, but the legal effect still depends on the contract and applicable law.

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3. Separate creation consent from use consent

Write separate approvals for (a) capturing your voice or likeness, (b) generating a replica, (c) editing or translating it, (d) distributing the result, (e) advertising with it and (f) using it in later productions. A signature on a scan-release form should not silently become a perpetual license for every later use.

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4. Address replacement and future work

Ask directly whether the replica may perform scenes, pickups, dubbing, localization or promotional material that you would otherwise be hired to perform. State whether a replica can replace a future audition, session or credited performance, and whether you receive notice, approval or additional compensation for each replacement.

5. Negotiate money and control

  • Compensation for the capture session and for each permitted replica use.
  • Additional payment for new media, territories, languages, campaigns, episodes or licensees.
  • Approval or notice rights for material changes, sensitive dialogue and political or commercial endorsements.
  • Retention, security, access, deletion and breach-notification terms.
  • Whether rights end with the contract, after a fixed term, or continue indefinitely.
  • What happens to copies and backups when the term ends or the project is canceled.

These are negotiation questions, not universal statutory requirements. The agreement should say which rights are granted and which are withheld rather than relying on an informal promise.

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A practical pre-signing checklist

  1. Read the complete agreement. Search for “AI,” “digital replica,” “synthetic,” “voice,” “likeness,” “training,” “derivative,” “perpetual,” “all media” and “future technologies.” Read definitions, exhibits, riders and incorporated policies, not just the rate page.
  2. Map every proposed use. Make a one-page list of what is recorded, generated, edited, distributed, transferred and retained. Mark anything the producer cannot describe.
  3. Ask for missing limits in writing. Request a named project, purpose, media, territory, term, compensation method and a rule for reuse or replacement. Oral assurances are difficult to prove later.
  4. Check coverage. SAG-AFTRA members should contact the union and identify the agreement covering the work. Others should identify the law governing the contract and consider an entertainment lawyer experienced in performer agreements.
  5. Confirm who may authorize changes. Define whether a studio, distributor, platform, advertiser, affiliate or artificial-intelligence vendor can receive the files or grant further permissions.
  6. Keep a signed record. Save the final PDF, riders, session notices, emails, invoices, consent forms and any technical description of the replica. Do not rely on a later version in a portal without preserving the version you signed.

What to do if you suspect unauthorized use

  1. Preserve evidence promptly. Record the URL, account name, date, time, screenshots and, where lawful, a copy of the audio or video. Save advertisements, captions and surrounding context showing whether the use is commercial.
  2. Compare the use with your documents. Check the exact project, media, term, territory, approved character or script and any transfer clause. A use that feels different may still be authorized—or a broad clause may be disputed—so avoid deleting the evidence or making unsupported public accusations.
  3. Notify the appropriate representative. Ask the union, if the work is covered, or an entertainment lawyer about contract enforcement, publicity-right claims, platform notices and available remedies. The best route depends on jurisdiction and the wording of the permission.
  4. Preserve communications. Keep takedown requests, responses, invoices, production notices and evidence of continuing distribution. Do not sign a settlement or expanded license simply to obtain a quick removal without legal review.

How the main protections differ

Protection or situation Who or what it concerns Key distinction
California AB 2602 Certain contracts involving a performer’s AI-generated voice or likeness replica Covered contracts require a reasonably specific intended-use description and professional representation in the circumstances identified by the law; it is not a blanket rule for every AI use.
California AB 1836 Certain commercial replicas of deceased performers Postmortem consent involving the appropriate rights holder or estate within the statute’s scope; it is not the principal living-performer rule.
SAG-AFTRA agreements Performers and productions covered by the applicable union contract Consent and use-description safeguards depend on the governing agreement, coverage and any stated exceptions.
State publicity, contract and related claims Living or deceased performers, depending on jurisdiction and facts Elements, defenses, remedies and duration vary by state, contract, commercial context and the specific replica.
Federal proposals Potential nationwide digital-replica standards The Copyright Office recommended legislation, and S. 1367 was introduced; a proposal is not enacted law.

Answers to common actor questions

Can a production use my voice or face after I sign an AI clause?

Only the actual contract, disclosed use, governing law and any applicable union agreement can answer that. A vague summary or a general release may be contested or may grant more than you intended; have the operative language reviewed before recording.

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Does SAG-AFTRA protect nonunion actors?

Union contract protections attach to covered agreements. Nonunion status does not decide whether California or another state’s law, a separate contract claim or another legal theory may apply.

Can I revoke consent later?

There is no universal revocation right established by the materials cited here. Check termination, deletion, approval and survival clauses in your agreement and ask qualified counsel or the union what the governing law allows.

Is the NO FAKES Act already law?

The identified congressional document is introduced legislation, not proof of enactment. Verify the current official bill status before describing it as law or relying on it.

Bottom line for performers

Protecting a voice or likeness starts before the recording session. Insist on a specific use description, separate capture from later exploitation, limit term and territory, address reuse and replacement, negotiate payment and deletion, and preserve every version of the agreement. Then match the contract to the right source of protection—California law where applicable, the union agreement covering the production, and the law governing the particular dispute. Because the rules are fact-specific and changing, professional review is the safest response to broad or ambiguous replica language.

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ActorsAI voice replicasCalifornia Lawdigital likenessentertainment contractsperformer rightsSAG-AFTRA

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