Key Points:
Zelda Williams has asked people to stop sending her AI-generated videos of her late father, Robin William.
She expressed that such content is distressing and disrespectful.
She condemned AI for turning genuine artistic legacies into low-quality digital imitations.
Late actor Robin Williams' daughter, Zelda Williams, has urged people to stop sending her AI-generated videos featuring her late father. In an Instagram story, she expressed frustration over the circulation of such content and urged people to stop sending her AI videos of her father.
“Please, just stop sending me AI videos of Dad,” Zelda wrote in an Instagram story on Monday 6 October, 2025.
Zelda stated,
"If you’re just trying to troll me, I’ve seen way worse, I’ll restrict and move on. But please, if you’ve got any decency, just stop doing this to him and to me, to everyone even, full stop. It’s dumb, it’s a waste of time and energy, and believe me, it’s NOT what he’d want," wrote Zelda.
Robin Williams, who passed away in 2014 at the age of 63, was celebrated for his performances in Good Morning Vietnam, Dead Poets Society, and Mrs. Doubtfire. His death was ruled a suicide, and his wife later revealed that a post-mortem examination had shown he was suffering from Lewy body dementia.
Zelda Williams, an actor and filmmaker who directed the 2024 horror comedy Lisa Frankenstein, criticized AI recreations for reducing real legacies into low-quality digital imitations.
She said these recreations amount to puppeteering deceased individuals for social media engagement, particularly on TikTok. She compared this process to producing “over-processed hotdogs” from human lives and art history.
This isn’t the first time Zelda has spoken out against AI recreations of her father. In 2023, she backed the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) campaign against the use of AI during its strike. In an Instagram post then, she revealed that she had heard instances where AI was used to mimic her father’s voice without permission, describing these recreations as “poor facsimiles at best and Frankensteinian monsters at worst.”
The controversy highlights a growing debate around AI-generated deepfakes on social media, which have been used for political manipulation, pornography, and scams. Earlier this year, a deepfake video showed Scarlett Johansson and others addressing antisemitic comments, while another fraudulent ad featured Crowded House singer Neil Finn discussing erectile dysfunction.
Recent AI videos of Robin Williams circulating on TikTok were reportedly created using OpenAI’s Sora tool, including a fake Apple advertisement and an AI-generated interaction with Betty White. OpenAI has stated that while copyright owners can report infringements, individual artists currently cannot opt out entirely. [Rh/Eth/VS]
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