Jennifer Hale’s voice is probably familiar to many of you, as she has worked on Mass Effect, Metal Gear Solid, Planescape: Torment and Baldur’s Gate on her resume, and they are all hugely popular franchises.

In an interview with Variety, Hale defended the SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) strike against artificial intelligence. Since July 26, several publishers (e.g. Electronic Arts, Activision, Disney) have been protested by actors belonging to the union. This has been going on for over a month, and it doesn’t look like it’s going to end anytime soon.

“AI is coming for all of us, because the truth is, AI is just a tool, like a hammer. If I take my hammer, I can build you a house. I can also take that same hammer and smash your skin and destroy who you are. When you use something that comes from our bodies or our voices, can we please get paid? Because now you’re using technology to take away our ability to feed our children. What I wish everybody would do is keep asking the real question, which is, ‘There’s a lot of money being made here. Where is it going?”, Hale said.

Baldur’s Gate 3 narrator Amelia Tyler has called the non-commercial reproduction of voice actors’ work not only the theft of their work, but also the theft of their identity. Wes Johnson, voice actor for The Elder Scrolls and Fallout, wrote on Twitter that anyone who tries to make a mod using an actor’s voice without consent, using artificial intelligence, knows they are committing a wrong.

Hale was paid $1200 for her performance as Naomi Hunter in Metal Gear Solid, while the game grossed $176 million. This begs the question, “Where’s the money?” No wonder she has urged her fans and supporters to call their congressional representatives in support of initiatives like the NO FAKES Act.

Source: PCGamer