The Simpsons voice actor Hank Azaria has written about his fears about being replaced by A.I., and how the art of voice acting is much more than replicating a sound.
In an op-ed for The New York Times, Azaria, who voices bartender Moe, Chief Wiggum, and Comic Book Guy among other characters on the show, talked of his sadness that his years of work on the show may result in A.I. taking over from him.
He wrote: “I imagine that soon enough, artificial intelligence will be able to recreate the sounds of the more than 100 voices I created for characters on The Simpsons over almost four decades. It makes me sad to think about it. Not to mention, it seems just plain wrong to steal my likeness or sound — or anyone else’s”.
He used the example of Moe as an example: “A.I. could have access to 36 years of Moe, the permanently disgruntled bartender. He’s appeared in just about every episode of The Simpsons. He’s been terrified, in love, hit in the head and, most often, in a state of bitter hatred. I’ve laughed as Moe in dozens of ways by now. I’ve probably sighed as Moe 100 times. In terms of training A.I., that’s a lot to work with”.
He went on to say that, despite these resources, the human element of vocal performance is what makes the characters unique. “A voice is not just a sound” he says. “I’d like to think that no matter how much an A.I. version of Moe or Snake or Chief Wiggum will sound like my voice, something will still be missing — the humanness. There’s so much of who I am that goes into creating a voice”.
He also mentioned the physical aspects of his work on the show, saying: “A misconception about voice acting is that it takes only a voice. But our bodies and souls are involved to get the proper believability. It can be as simple as running in place if your character’s running. If your character is crying, you work up real tears, real emotion”.
Despite his sadness, Azaria concluded his piece on an optimistic note. “It’s the neck-up version that I can see A.I. being capable of, at least right now” he said. “The body and soul part will be harder”.
Last year, Azaria went on the road performing with his Bruce Springsteen tribute act, Hank Azaria & The EZ Street Band. Prior to that, he also commented on when he felt The Simpsons would end.
The post ‘The Simpsons’ actor Hank Azaria expects AI will replace him soon: “It makes me sad to think about” appeared first on NME.
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