The Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) is filing an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against Epic Games, after the company implemented an AI-voiced Darth Vader NPC in Fortnite last week.
The complaint, which can be viewed here, alleges that over the last six months, Llama Productions (owned by Epic Games) has failed to bargain in good faith with SAG-AFTRA's video game actors and has made "unilateral changes to terms and conditions of employment, without providing notice to the union or the opportunity to bargain, by utilizing AI-generated voices to replace bargaining unit work" on Fortnite.
Fortnite added the AI Darth Vader last week, as an NPC character that can join or leave your Fortnite squad and have conversations with players over voice chat in the persona of Darth Vader. Though the AI Darth Vader has been programmed to offer support for individuals who express they might be struggling with mental health, Epic Games also had to patch it almost immediately after it launched to keep it from dropping F-bombs.
The character of Darth Vader was originally voiced by James Earl Jones, who passed away in September of last year at the age of 93. This AI recreation was done with the blessing of James Earl Jones' estate, with his family stating that: "James Earl felt that the voice of Darth Vader was inseparable from the story of Star Wars, and he always wanted fans of all ages to continue to experience it. We hope that this collaboration with Fortnite will allow both longtime fans of Darth Vader and newer generations to share in the enjoyment of this iconic character."
However, the use of AI voices at all by Epic Games presents a major issue for SAG-AFTRA, given its efforts to come to an agreement on a contract for its video game performers over the last year. The video game performing members of the union have been on strike for around 10 months now. The strike was started specifically due to a lack of agreement on AI provisions, even as 24 out of 25 other contract proposals had been affirmed by both sides. Earlier this year, SAG-AFTRA publicly shared a breakdown of the portions of the contract still disagreed upon by both sides, expressing that it was still "frustratingly far apart" on the provisions.
In light of this, SAG-AFTRA has issued a statement explaining its unfair labor practice charge against Epic, essentially claiming that Epic's use of AI was undermining the work of human SAG-AFTRA members who have previously or could potentially do work of matching Darth Vader's voice with their own performances. Here's the statement, in full:
We celebrate the right of our members and their estates to control the use of their digital replicas and welcome the use of new technologies to allow new generations to share in the enjoyment of those legacies and renowned roles. However, we must protect our right to bargain terms and conditions around uses of voice that replace the work of our members, including those who previously did the work of matching Darth Vader's iconic rhythm and tone in video games.
Fortnite's signatory company, Llama Productions, chose to replace the work of human performers with A.I. technology. Unfortunately, they did so without providing any notice of their intent to do this and without bargaining with us over appropriate terms. As such, we have filed an unfair labor practice charge with the NLRB against Llama Productions.
With the charge filed, the next step will be a review by the NLRB, potentially followed by an investigation and hearing if the agency believes the charge has merit, or dismissal if the NLRB believes it does not. In the event that it is determined Epic Games has committed an unfair labor practice, the NLRB can force it to remedy the situation in various ways, such as potentially hiring an actor to record a voice for Darth Vader or removing him from the game entirely, or some other penalty. However, these cases often take months or even years to progress, or can be settled outside by the two parties and the charge dropped.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to [email protected].
