George Carlin's Daughter Slams His AI-Generated Comedy Special
George Carlin
An AI-generated hour-long comedy special called George Carlin: I'm Glad I'm Dead was just released, over 15 years after comedian George Carlin's death in 2008, and his daughter is speaking out against the project.
Taking to X, formerly Twitter, the comedian's daughter Kelly Carlin declared, "My dad spent a lifetime perfecting his craft from his very human life, brain and imagination. No machine will ever replace his genius."
Addressing the use of AI as a whole, she added, "Let’s let the artist’s work speak for itself. Humans are so afraid of the void that we can’t let what has fallen into it stay there."
…that will never exist again. Let’s let the artist’s work speak for itself. Humans are so afraid of the void that we can’t let what has fallen into it stay there. 2/3
— Kelly Carlin (@kelly_carlin) January 11, 2024
Kelly also highlighted the abundance of comedians out there who haven't gotten the chance to shine, before noting that fans of her father, the "genuine George Carlin," can easily watch one of his 14 specials that already exist.
The new comedy special was generated by the AI Dudesy, which hosts a podcast with Will Sasso of Mad TV and podcaster Chad Kultgen.
At the beginning of the show, the AI says, “I just want to let you know very clearly that what you’re about to hear is not George Carlin. It’s my impersonation of George Carlin that I developed in the exact same way a human impressionist would."
Many fans of Carlin rallied behind his daughter and shared their thoughts in the comments of the special, with one writing, "This is everything Carlin didn’t want for the future. He would hate it lol."
"Not sure what you guys are trying to achieve now...I dunno I just feel uncomfortable with this stuff. I'd rather have AI do health science and new discovery than this," said another.
"Morbid. Gross." proclaimed a third.
Despite this, there were some fans of the special, such as one who responded, "This is absolutely on point and what i needed today. Thank you for making this."
The use of AI-generated work, especially when it is content created of a late star like Carlin or Robin Williams, who is often discussed when it comes to AI, is still heavily debated, and played a big role in the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes in 2023.
Next: Robin Williams' Daughter Zelda Slams "Disturbing" AI Videos of Her Dad
