Tilly Norwood Is an ‘AI Actress’ — Emily Blunt Says She’s ‘Terrifying’

Tilly Norwood is an “aspiring actress” and social media influencer with a growing page on Instagram. But wait — is she?

Actually, no, she’s AI, created by artificial intelligence, and definitely not real. And her emergence on the scene is deeply upsetting some top actresses.

Emily Blunt labeled Tilly Norwood “terrifying” and “very, very scary.”

“Does it disappoint me? I don’t know how to quite answer it, other than to say how terrifying this is,” Blunt told Variety. “No, are you serious? That’s an AI? Good Lord, we’re screwed. That is really, really scary, Come on, agencies, don’t do that. Please stop. Please stop taking away our human connection.”

COMPLEX SHOP: Shop the brands you love, anytime and anywhere. Uncover what’s next. Buy. Collect. Obsess.

According to Variety, Blunt’s comments came after “multiple talent agents were interested in signing the AI creation.”

“We want Tilly to be the next Scarlett Johansson or Natalie Portman, that’s the aim of what we’re doing,” creator Eline Van der Velden told Broadcast International.

SAG-AFTRA slammed the AI creation in a news release, calling Norwood a “synthetic performer.” That’s the Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.

“SAG-AFTRA believes creativity is, and should remain, human-centered. The union is opposed to the replacement of human performers by synthetics,” the organization wrote.

“To be clear, ‘Tilly Norwood’ is not an actor, it’s a character generated by a computer program that was trained on the work of countless professional performers — without permission or compensation.”

Sophie Turner and Whoopi Goldberg have also criticized the AI “actress,” according to People.

Norwood’s Instagram page reads, “You’ll either get it or pretend you don’t. I’m a creation. #aiart 🎭 Actress (aspiring) 📍 London (mostly in cafés) ☕ Mild chaos, major delusions.” Norwood is the creation of Dutch actor and comedian Eline Van Der Velden, according to People.

On Instagram, Norwood posts things like this: “New stills from my latest work as an AI actress ✨ Acting in this space feels like stepping into the future, and I can’t wait to share more. Which shot is your favourite — 1, 2, 3 or 4?”

“To those who have expressed anger over the creation of our AI character, Tilly Norwood: she is not a replacement for a human being, but a creative work – a piece of art,” Van Der Velden wrote in a lengthy defense of the AI on its Instagram page.

“Like many forms of art before her, she sparks conversation, and that in itself shows the power of creativity. I see AI not as a replacement for people, but as a new tool – a new paintbrush,” she wrote.

“Just as animation, puppetry, or CGI opened fresh possibilities without taking away from live acting, 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,” added Van Der Velden.

“Creating Tilly has been, for me, an act of imagination and craftsmanship, not unlike drawing a character, writing a role or shaping a performance. It takes time, skill and iteration to bring such a character to life,” she added. “She represents experimentation, not substitution. Much of my work has always been about holding up a mirror to society through satire and this is no different.”

Continued Van Der Velden: “I also believe AI characters should be judged as part of their own genre, on their own merits, rather than compared directly with human actors. Each form of art has its place, and each can be valued for what it uniquely brings. I hope we can welcome AI as part of the wider artistic family: one more way to express ourselves, alongside theatre, film, painting, music and countless others. When we celebrate all forms of creativity, we open doors to new voices, new stories, and new ways of connecting with each other.”

Some people were critical of the idea in the comment thread on Norwood’s Instagram page.

“You should release the names of every single individual ‘Tilly’ was modeled after and they should ALL receive royalties for anything grossed by this AI model,” wrote one person.

“If she really was just an art piece, you wouldn’t be trying to get her an agent,” alleged another person.

“No, no matter how you idealize this, the fact is: everytime a movie use Tilly Norwood as an actress, there will be a young girl real person actress lost her job. That’s literally what ‘replacement’ meant,” another person added.