American actor Bruce Willis sold the rights to use his digital image using the technologies of Deepcake, a company created in 2020 by Russian engineers.
This will allow the artist to appear in new projects even after he has made the decision to leave the cinema due to aphasia, a neurological disorder that affects cognitive abilities.
The specialists of the web platform, which optimizes content using artificial intelligence, have managed to create a digital twin of Willis in high definition (4K).
For this, 34,000 images of the actor's face from various angles had to be loaded into the neural network.
He himself admitted that he was pleased with the result of the work of Russian specialists.
“I liked the accuracy of the execution of my character.
For me, this is a wonderful opportunity to go back in time.
The neural network was trained on the materials of Die Hard and The Fifth Element, so my character is similar to the images of that time,” said Bruce.
The artist also thanked the Deepcake team for the hard work and opportunity they gave him.
“Thanks to the development of such modern technologies, I have been able to communicate, work and participate in filming, even when I am on another continent.
For me, this is a completely new and interesting experience, and I am grateful to our team,” he concluded.
In August 2021, the digital twin of Bruce Willis made his debut on Russian TV screens in the MegaFon advertising series.
As part of the “Because You” campaign, the young image of the actor appeared in the family action movie about special agents “Partners”.
© Shot from the MegaFon promotional video
Konstantin Solovyov acted as an understudy, who was “grafted” with the appearance of a Hollywood star.
At the same time, 39 artists participated in the casting for this role.
According to the developers of the technology, the choice of an understudy is an important detail, since a deepfake creates only a mask, but the chosen actor must play the necessary emotions and movements characteristic of the prototype.
The main partner of the digital Bruce Willis in the serial blockbuster was the comedian and TV presenter Azamat Musagaliev.
Each episode of the project has a completed storyline in which the services of a telecommunications company are advertised.
“The partners have two bright and completely opposite roles.
An experienced agent, played by Bruce, a man of few words and a tough guy, he embodies the idea of \u200b\u200breliability.
And the new agent - the role of Azamat - is responsible for the benefit: this hero is the main one in terms of life hacks and ingenuity, ”explained Vasily Bolshakov in an interview with Sostav, who until mid-February 2022 held the position of director of brand and marketing communications at MegaFon.
The advertising series was directed by Ilya Naishuller ("Hardcore", "Nobody", "Young Man").
According to Bolshakov, it turned out to agree with the Hollywood artist quickly enough.
“All negotiations with Bruce Willis were conducted by our team.
It was a very risky idea, but surprisingly, the discussion of joint work was quick and productive,” Bolshakov said.
“The actor was interested in the brand and our approach to organizing production... The script for the first episode was agreed upon without a single edit.”
Now, after buying the rights, engineers will be able to make Willis part of a project in just a few days.
However, it is noted that the actor and his family have the right to agree on the content produced.
Understudy of Bruce Willis - actor Konstantin Solovyov
© Frame from MegaFon video
The departure of Bruce Willis from the cinema became known in March 2022.
The Golden Globe winner made this decision after being diagnosed with a disease that leads to speech dysfunction - aphasia.
People with this disease have problems not only with dialogue, but also with listening, writing and reading.
However, despite the fact that aphasia affects a person's speech abilities, intelligence does not suffer in any way.
After the discovery of the disease, Willis's relatives informed fans on social networks, announcing the end of the acting career of the movie star.
Relatives of the artist admitted that it was a difficult period for the whole family, but the support and compassion of the fans helped a lot to get through it.
Bruce Willis during his acting career managed to take part in the filming of more than 100 films.
The artist received recognition after the role of John McClane in the film Die Hard (1988).
The last film with Willis at the moment was released on September 2, 2022 - the action movie "Under Watch" by Matt Eskandari.
Several more projects are in production.