Hasbro faces backlash over AI voice contracts requiring Peppa Pig child actors to sign away rights
7 Sources
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Peppa Pig Contract Backlash Is the Latest Over the Use of AI in Entertainment
Omar Gallaga has covered technology, digital culture and other topics for outlets including CNET, NPR, WIRED, Texas Monthly, MSNBC, Consumer Reports, The Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, The Atlantic and the Austin American-Statesman, where he was a longtime tech reporter, editor and
[2]
Peppa Pig Owner Demands Child Actors Sign Away Voice Rights to AI
Can't-miss innovations from the bleeding edge of science and tech Voice actors have been waging a fierce battle with the entertainment industry over training AI to synthesize their voices, effectively allowing them to reproduce their likenesses in perpetuity. Not even underage performers are safe
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Peppa Pig controversy as Hasbro introduce AI clause for child actors
US entertainment giant Hasbro is reportedly asking child actors on the popular series Peppa Pig to sign over their voices to artificial intelligence under new contract terms. An open letter signed by 1,000 industry professionals condemns the AI contract clause and warns of matters of
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D&D and Magic owner Hasbro is reportedly trying to get child actors from Peppa Pig to sign away their voices to AI
Hasbro really can't catch a break -- nor do I think it deserves one. The parent company of Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering is both a large enough corporation to take its licks from punters like me, but it's also had a decade filled with missteps. Adding one more onto the pile, it's been
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Hasbro Tries To Force Child Actors Into Signing AI Voice Contracts
An open letter is fighting to protect the rights of Peppa Pig's child cast from being horribly screwed over The plague of AI has been especially damaging among voice actors, whose performances are far too easily emulated by increasingly convincing AI software. After an 11-month strike over the
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Hasbro's TV Contracts Allegedly Ask Child Voice Actors to Sign Rights Away for AI Use
A "major studio" behind an animated television series is requiring child actors to surrender their voices to use by generative AI in their contracts, according to a group of agents who specialize in working with minors. The U.K.-based Agents of Young Performers Association made the allegations in
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Peppa Pig Backlash After Brand Owner Hasbro Reportedly Tries Forcing Child Actors to Sign Away AI Voice Rights
Peppa Pig's cast of child actors have reportedly been told they must sign new contracts that allow brand owner Hasbro to reproduce their voices using AI. Hasbro has owned the Peppa Pig franchise, which began as a popular British children's TV series, since 2019. Now, however, the company is
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Hasbro is under fire for reportedly asking child voice actors on Peppa Pig to sign contracts allowing AI recreations of their voices. The Agents of Young Performers Association has launched an open letter signed by over 1,000 industry professionals, arguing children cannot provide informed consent for minors and demanding full exemption from AI usage in contracts involving young performers.
Hasbro Pushes AI Voice Contracts for Child Performers
Hasbro, the toy conglomerate behind Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering, is facing intense scrutiny after reportedly asking child voice actors on Peppa Pig to sign away voice rights to AI under new contract terms
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. The contracts would allow the company to use AI recreations of their voices across all commercial assets within the franchise, effectively enabling voice cloning technology to replicate young performers indefinitely2
. Industry sources confirm this represents part of a broader trend of rights holders pressuring children into surrendering control over their vocal likenesses.
Source: Futurism
AYPA Launches Campaign Against AI Clause for Child Actors
The Agents of Young Performers Association has organized an open letter condemning these AI voice contracts, gathering over 1,000 signatures from industry professionals
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. While the letter doesn't explicitly name Peppa Pig, it references "a major studio who owns the IP for an international children's franchise producing a long running animated television series" that has offered contracts to child voice actors with a "take it or leave it" attitude regarding AI clauses4
. Hasbro acknowledged the letter's existence to multiple outlets, though it declined to comment on specific contractual arrangements.Informed Consent for Minors Becomes Central Issue
The AYPA's open letter emphasizes that "children cannot provide fully informed legal consent and a parent or guardian's approval should never be used as a blanket license to capture, clone, train, or reuse a child's voice indefinitely"
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. The organization argues that any agreement involving a child's voice should be fully exempt from all AI usage, noting that in the UK, children cannot join the actors' union Equity until age 10, leaving younger performers without institutional support when parents face these contract decisions5
. The letter warns that no child should have their future professional identity shaped by an AI model created before they understood its consequences.
Source: Euronews
Entertainment Industry Faces Mounting Backlash Over AI
This controversy adds to Hollywood's fraught relationship with artificial intelligence. The entertainment industry has witnessed prolonged strikes over AI usage, with voice actors waging an 11-month battle over technology that can synthesize their performances
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. The backlash over AI extends beyond voiceover work—recent weeks saw A24 announce a deal with Google DeepMind for AI filmmaking tools, triggering anger among indie cinema fans, while Emmy-winning director Jorge Gutierrez canceled an AI-animated series with Amazon's MGM Studios after facing severe criticism online2
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Ethical Implications Extend Beyond Single Show
The AI clauses reportedly allow companies to clone actors' voices, train AI learning models, and generate artificial audio while potentially selling or licensing voice data to third parties without obtaining consent or paying royalties
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. For Peppa Pig specifically, which Hasbro acquired from Entertainment One in 2019 for $3.8 billion, the company likely aims to use child performers' voices for its vast merchandising operation—toys, devices, and tie-ins—without paying actors to return to studios5
. Hasbro's track record includes laying off 1,100 people and having an AI-obsessed CEO, raising concerns about its commitment to protecting performers4
.Industry Demands Non-AI Clauses as Standard
AYPA representatives told outlets that non-AI clauses should be standard in all contracts for child actors, particularly given deepfake concerns and the rapid evolution of voice cloning technology
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. Hasbro responded that "the protection of child performers is core to who Hasbro is" and committed to engaging with AI issues "in a responsible and transparent manner," though critics question whether any responsible approach exists for harvesting children's voices for perpetual AI use4
. The controversy signals that as AI technology advances, the question of who controls vocal likenesses—especially those of minors—will continue testing the boundaries of consent and exploitation in the entertainment industry.
Source: IGN
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