Matthew Lawrence wants to resurrect Robin Williams with AI
'It would be so cool,' Lawrence said, adding that Williams' voice belongs in modern AI systems or interactive projects. 'He's gotta be the voice of AI. He's gotta be the voice in something.' Lawrence revealed the idea came to him after stumbling upon an old TV commercial featuring Williams doing a robotic-style voiceover, which felt eerily ahead of its time.
Fans have responded with mixed feelings. Some say the suggestion dishonours Williams' legacy and reduces his memory to a tech gimmick. Others find it an intriguing tribute, noting Williams' timeless voice brought comfort and humour to millions. Comments under news posts have expressed unease, with users calling it 'weird,' 'too soon,' and 'morally slippery.'
Lawrence emphasised he would only pursue the project with full approval from Williams' family. Still, the proposal has raised larger ethical questions about the posthumous use of AI, especially for celebrities who never gave consent.
Lawrence also shared emotional memories of Williams on the Mrs. Doubtfire set, revealing that Williams warned him as a child actor to avoid drugs. 'Don't ever do drugs. Especially cocaine,' Williams told him. That advice, Lawrence said, changed his life.
While the intentions may be nostalgic, the idea of digitally reviving Williams' voice has clearly touched a cultural nerve, suggesting that even the most beloved icons aren't safe from AI's reach. Whether this tribute ever materialises remains to be seen.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Express Tribune
5 hours ago
- Express Tribune
Why did Hayley Williams delete her album before dropping 17 singles?
Hayley Williams is turning the album concept on its head. Just days ago, the Paramore frontwoman quietly uploaded 17 new songs to her website, each as a clickable file with password protection. There was no track list, no official album name, just raw audio files scattered like fragments of a desktop. Then, without warning, she took them all down. Now, the same 17 tracks have returned, not as an album, but as individually released singles through her new label, Post Atlantic. Fans hoping for a cohesive record will have to wait. Williams is adamant these are not meant to be sequenced. 'It's 17 songs. Seventeen singles,' reads the blunt confirmation across fan circles. No title. No order. Just music. The release marks her first major project since she and Paramore exited their longtime contract with Atlantic Records. Going fully independent, she's partnered with Secretly Distribution to drop the songs on streaming platforms, sidestepping traditional album cycles. Among the tracks is True Believer, a fiery critique of American evangelicalism, echoing her recent statements about the Christian Contemporary Music industry. Another focus track, GLUM, plays with vocal manipulation, transforming her signature voice into something glitchy and unfamiliar. Fans have latched onto songs like Ice in My OJ and Discovery Channel, the latter repurposing a chorus from the Bloodhound Gang's 1999 hit The Bad Touch. Rumours persist that the project is secretly titled Ego or Ego Death, but nothing official has been announced. Instead, Williams seems to be inviting listeners into a choose-your-own-album experience, one that challenges how music is consumed and categorised. In true Hayley fashion, she's thrown out the rulebook. And fans are left piecing together the story, one single at a time.
Business Recorder
2 days ago
- Business Recorder
‘Wednesday' Season 2 gets gothic global premiere in London
LONDON: Hit Netflix series 'Wednesday' expands the Addams Family world as it returns to screens nearly three years after the show launched in November 2022. Season Two of the dark fantasy series premiered at London's Westminster on Wednesday, with its cast and creators walking a purple carpet outside Central Hall and Queen Elizabeth II Centre. The new season sees Wednesday Addams, played by Jenna Ortega, returning to Nevermore Academy as a celebrated hero, much to her dismay. The tetchy teen puts her detective hat back on to solve new supernatural mysteries, while dealing with glitches in her psychic powers. Wednesday also faces another nuisance - family. Her little brother Pugsley, played by Isaac Ordonez, starts his studies at Nevermore and their parents are a frequent presence on campus. 'She's kind of knocked off her feet this season. So it's a lot of pressure,' said Ortega. The series' creators and showrunners Alfred Gough and Miles Millar said 'Wednesday' returns 'bigger and better'. 'There's more of the Addams Family this season,' said Gough. 'We learn more about the characters you got to meet in Season One and they have their own storylines.' The sophomore season also introduces new characters, including Steve Buscemi's Nevermore principal Barry Dort and the Addams family matriarch Grandmama Hester Frump, played by Joanna Lumley. George Lucas makes Comic-Con debut for Lucas Museum of Narrative Art Pop star Lady Gaga makes a guest star appearance as a teacher in Part 2. Mother-daughter dynamics are at the heart of the new season, said Millar. 'It's about mothers and daughters, it's three generations of Addams women together. It's also about learning to not be in control of everything, for Wednesday. And it's really always about female friendship and female sisterhood,' he said. Ortega, 22, also executive produced the new season. Rather than control, it gave her 'freedom' she said. 'She's kind of our cast spokesperson. Any time I felt like something needed to be said or if I had any ideas, she was always like, 'come to me and we'll make it work'. She just looks out for us,' Emma Myers, who plays Wednesday's roommate Enid Sinclair, said. Filmmaker Tim Burton also returns as one of the directors and executive producers. 'Wednesday' Season Two will be released in two four-episode installments, with Part One dropping August 6 and Part Two out on September 3.
Express Tribune
2 days ago
- Express Tribune
Why did Hayley Williams suddenly pull her secret album offline?
Hayley Williams has pulled a vanishing act on her fans. Days after quietly uploading her surprise solo album Ego to her website, the Paramore frontwoman has deleted all 17 tracks without explanation. In place of the music now sits a simple message: "Hello, there. Thank you for listening." And just like that, Ego has disappeared, possibly for good. The mysterious rollout began last week when Williams' latest track Mirtazapine premiered on WNXP Nashville. Not long after, the full album, featuring titles like Kill Me, Glum, and Brotherly Hate, appeared on her official site. But it wasn't freely available. To access the music, fans had to purchase from her hair brand, Good Dye Young, and enter a 16-digit code. Those who did were granted temporary access to what now feels like a ghost record. Theories are circulating. Williams, now an independent artist following the expiration of her major label contract, may be experimenting with exclusivity, or simply expressing disillusionment with the traditional release model. Some speculate that the removal was part of the concept itself: a record about ego that self-destructs. The stunt has echoes of her previous unpredictable moves. She surprise-dropped Flowers for Vases / descansos in 2021, and before that, released her solo debut Petals for Armor in 2020. More recently, she's appeared on tracks with Turnstile, Moses Sumney, and David Byrne, who has a new album Who Is the Sky? releasing in September featuring Williams on What Is the Reason For It? As for Ego, it's unclear whether the album will ever reach streaming platforms or return to her site. For now, it exists only in fragments, downloaded by a few and discussed in whispers.
