Disney's Owl House Creator Urges Fans to Pirate Her Show Over AI Content Plans

'Owl House' Creator Dana Terrace Gives Her Blessing to Pirate It

"Unsubscribe from Disney+. Pirate Owl House. I don’t care," she wrote on November 13. "Fuck gen AI." If that weren't enough of for you, she made another post about the initial Disney/genAI news that plainly said, "PICK UP A PENCIL OR DIE." Like many creators in the animation industry, Terrace doesn't like the controversial technology, which has been considered a form of copyright infringement. In response to the oft-used rebuttal of AI helping non-creative people flex their creative muscles, Terrace argued those people "create movies and art everyday,. Every director, show runner, artist, film maker I know is a regular person, with limited resources, picking up pens, pencils, and styluses to create movies and art. All artists are regular people! This is one of the beauties of art & storytelling. Literally anyone can do it without genAI data centers poisoning ppls towns." All pretty concrete comments from Terrace, who's generally been cordial about Disney in the two years since Owl House ended its three-season run, even when she's brought up the show not always being supported by the network. Instead, she's chosen to move on, shooting down any hopes for a spinoff or revival and focusing on her current Glitch series, Knights of Guinevere.

Creator of popular Disney animated series tells fans to "unsubscribe" from Disney Plus and "pirate" her show over AI changes on the streamer

The Owl House creator Dana Terrace has taken a stand against Disney Plus over AI changes in the streaming platform, urging fans to "unsubscribe" and even "pirate" her show. The company just announced that a new feature could be added to the streamer soon, allowing users to create their own AI-generated content. During last Thursday's quarterly earnings call, CEO Bob Iger said they're "really excited", saying that "AI is going to give us the ability" to "provide users of Disney Plus with a much more engaged experience. Including the ability for them to create user-generated content and to consume user generated content - mostly short-form - from others." Terrace immediately responded on social media, writing on Twitter: "'If you pay us we'll let you make your own content slop! That we will own!' YOU CAN DRAW AND WRITE AND POST YOUR OWN S*** FOR FREE. Bob Iger and his ilk are f***ing ghouls." "Unsubscribe from Disney+. Pirate Owl House. I don't care. F*** gen AI," she added in a following message. Following some user comments that defended Iger's decision, Terrace said: "A 'regular person' can already create movies. Regular people create movies and art everyday. Every director, show runner, artist, film maker I know is a regular person, with limited resources, picking up pens, pencils, and styluses to create movies and art. EVERY. DAMN. DAY." The backlash online has only grown bigger since the announcement, with some fans hoping that the company will end up backtracking. The AI feature is not available yet on the streamer, as it is still in the development phase. With a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, The Owl House follows self-assured teenager Luz as she "stumbles upon a portal to a magical realm where she befriends Eda, a rebellious witch and King, a tiny warrior", according to the official synopsis. "Despite not having magical abilities, Luz pursues her dream of becoming a witch by serving as Eda's apprentice." The Owl House ran for three seasons on Disney Channel from 2020 to 2023, and it's now available to stream on Disney Plus. For more, we have a guide to all the new Disney movies.