Netflix Removes AI-Generated Arcane Poster Amid Controversy and Riot Games' Criticism

Arcane Netflix banner image pulled after fans spot tell-tale signs of AI

Riot Games has pulled a promotional poster after fans pointed out it seemed to have been made using AI. After thanking an eagle-eyed viewer for pointing out the strangeness of a hand in banner art on Netflix itself, Riot Games called the image "a mistake [that] has since been removed" and asserted its "strict stance" against AI. "Appreciate you bringing this to our attention," wrote brand lead for Riot Games and Arcane, Alex Shahmiri. "We have a strict stance of no AI for anything relating to Arcane 'cause it's disrespectful to the incredible artists who worked on the show," he added. "This image was a mistake and has since been removed. [Thank you] again for calling it out." ICYMI, indie game platform Itch.io now requires developers to disclose whether generative AI has been used in their work. The platform recently detailed its new tagging requirement, specifying it is a required field for asset creator pages "to ensure buyers are aware of the origins of the material they are obtaining". In Eurogamer's Arcane Season 2 review, which earned a respectable four out of five stars, Chris T. said, "Some iffy pacing moments aside, Arcane's second and final season truly puts the money on screen. This is a striking, emotionally wrought, hard-punching climax."

Arcane fans (and staff) blast Netflix for "disrespectful" AI poster

Netflix has a difficult relationship with AI. That is, it keeps using it no matter how many times it gets caught. We've seen it called out several times already for suspect AI imagery, even in a true crime documentary. This time even one of its partners is unhappy. Several fans had criticised Netflix for promoting Arcane Season 2 with an image that appeared to have been modified using generative AI to expand the canvas. Many people may consider this kind of use to be one of the more harmless forms of AI image editing, but the reaction shows that using any form of generative AI can land a brand in hot water. The big giveaway in the poster was Vi's hand, which is clearly not anatomically correct. Netflix has since removed the poster, which is for the best since it even upset people at Riot Games, which oversaw the production of Christian Linke and Alex Yee's animated steampunk adventure with the French animation studio Fortiche. Arcane brand lead Alex Shahmiri wrote on X: "Appreciate you bringing this to our attention. We have a strict stance of no AI for anything relating to Arcane cause it's disrespectful to the incredible artists who worked on the show. This image was a mistake and has since been removed." Some people are wondering how one uses AI by mistake, but I presume what happened is that someone at Netflix did it knowingly and that Riot Games was put out and asked them to remove the poster. Shahmiri was then asked about whether the no AI policy applied to other Riot Games titles such as Valorant and League of Legends. "I can only speak to what I work on," Shahmiri responded. "From a purely personal level, I'm not a fan of AI because what makes art so special is the human connection and feeling. Be it through art, music, or any creative medium - it's something I never want to see replaced by AI." Using AI to edit poster designs has become a hot topic - just look at the Wicked poster controversy. But one thing is fans editing posters using AI, another thing is for film or series distributor to do it itself. Netflix has also caused controversy by firing game developers and promptly announcing that it was investigating the use of AI to make games. For the moment, one of its most anticipated upcoming games is the Squid Game: Unleashed video game, which wasn't made with AI as far as we know.

Netflix removes AI art poster for Arcane after an outcry from creators

Netflix has pulled a poster for season two of its popular show Arcane as fans noticed that AI had been used to make the promotional art. Arcane is made by Riot Games and French animation studio Fortiche for Netflix and is a critical darling for its visual artistry, combining digital and hand-drawn artwork. That's why a fan thought a weirdly shaped hand on a poster when the show is paused seemed out of character for Arcane and asked people behind the show about it on X. Arcane brand lead Alex Shahmiri confirmed the AI origin of the art and that it was a mistake because Arcane has a strict rule against using AI art for the series. "Appreciate you bringing this to our attention. we have a strict stance of no ai for anything relating to arcane cause it's disrespectful to the incredible artists who worked on the show. this image was a mistake and has since been removed. ty again for calling it out," Shahmri wrote on X in response to the AI art discovery. "I can only speak to what i work on. from a purely personal level, i'm not a fan of ai because what makes art so special is the human connection and feeling. be it through art, music, or any creative medium - it's something i never want to see replaced by ai." Netflix pulling the poster off of the show is fitting, but Arcane isn't unique in facing questions of AI art being used, with or without the permission of the creatives behind the show. Disney dealt with a similar issue when the Marvel show Secret Invasion used AI-generated art when displaying the credits for the show. Both fans and artists criticized Disney for the choice. Method Studios, who designed the credits, said at the time that the AI tools replaced no jobs, but it undoubtedly left a sour taste in many people who would otherwise enjoy the show. Using AI to make images is often easier, faster, and cheaper than hiring human artists. That doesn't mean it's better, though. The debate over AI's role in art crosses commercial, cultural, and aesthetic issues that are sometimes hard to quantify. How much money do you need to save by using AI to make up for turning off viewers? How degraded is a show using AI art, and is the speed of completion worth it not looking as good as it could have with humans designing it? AI tools like DALL-E and MidJourney may have opened new doors for creators, but what's fine for a marketing campaign or personal amusement is not always good enough for a project that seeks artistic integrity and commercial success. That's before even addressing how AI image makers are often trained on existing artworks in a way that sometimes looks a lot like plagiarism. Amusingly, the backlash against AI art is producing its own market. Digital art app Procreate explicitly declared against using generative AI in art and promised never to use it in its own features. AI art may still pop up from big companies like Netflix and Disney. Still, if creators stick to refusing to employ it in their projects for the big companies, it won't take over, just be a regular irritant in marketing and promotional material every so often. A cautionary tale about expediency over quality.

Netflix removed an Arcane season 2 poster made via AI and Riot Games has swiftly responded: "It's disrespectful to the incredible artists who worked on the show"

Netflix have removed what appears to be an AI-generated poster for Arcane season 2 after it was called out by a viewer - and one Riot Games employee has responded in no uncertain terms that it's "disrespectful" to those who have worked on the show. The poster, which you can see below, was first spotted by a Twitter user who had paused the show on Netflix and noticed that Vi's hand was anatomically incorrect - a typical indicator that AI was involved in the process. After a separate Twitter user called it out for being "disappointing and disrespectful", Arcane brand lead Alex Shahmiri replied, "Appreciate you bringing this to our attention. We have a strict stance of no AI for anything relating to Arcane cause it's disrespectful to the incredible artists who worked on the show. This image was a mistake and has since been removed. [Thank you] again for calling it out." Another, meanwhile, took umbrage at Shahmiri focusing only on Arcane's non-AI policy, pointing to whether it applied to other Riot Games properties such as Valorant and League of Legends. In response, Shahmiri said, "I can only speak to what I work on. From a purely personal level, I'm not a fan of AI because what makes art so special is the human connection and feeling. Be it through art, music, or any creative medium - it's something I never want to see replaced by AI." It's especially disappointing, too, because animation studio Fortiche has already delivered the goods on Arcane season 2 - including an incredible scene made entirely out of charcoal. Ahead of its finale, check out our verdict so far in the Arcane season 2 review, then dive into our interview with co-creator Christian Linke on his hours-long struggle attempting to crack the Netflix series' final line.

Riot calls out 'disrespectful' AI-extended Arcane art on Netflix: 'This image was a mistake'

Another day, another spot of generative AI drama, this one involving a promo image for the League of Legends-based anime Arcane. The image, which showed up as a thumbnail in the streaming app, was taken down by Netflix after fans called out some hinkiness that pretty clearly pointed the finger at work done by a machine. A screenshot was initially shared on X by eggbertith, who noticed some strangeness in Jinx's hand in a banner image. Suspicions of AI-generated content arose immediately and were effectively confirmed by Riot, which apparently wasn't any happier about it than the fans. "Appreciate you bringing this to our attention," Riot brand manager Alex Shahmiri wrote on X (via GamesRadar). "We have a strict stance of no AI for anything relating to Arcane cause it's disrespectful to the incredible artists who worked on the show. This image was a mistake and has since been removed. TY again for calling it out." By all appearances, this isn't Riot's whiff: It looks like someone at Netflix took an existing piece of Arcane art and extended it using Photoshop's "generative fill" tool (or something like it) to make it suitable for a banner. This is the original image, which is still online: And this is what came out of the machine -- the resolution is lower, but the hand is very clearly mangled. It's not really "AI-generated art," which I think mitigates the situation somewhat, but it is incredibly half-assed, and that's a problem in itself: Media companies who should know better seem to put so much faith into the magic of AI that nobody bothers to pay attention to the results to ensure it's not hacked-up garbage, which leaves us with -- you guessed it -- hacked up garbage. Either that, or there's a widely-held assumption that mass-media consumers won't notice or won't care that stuff like a promotional thumbnail for the most expensive animated series ever produced is made with the same attention to quality you'd expect from a 99-cent burger. Honestly, I'm not sure which is worse. In fine "so you hate waffles" fashion, a handful of people pressed Shahmiri about his specific reference to Arcane, as though it somehow implied that Riot is fine with the use of generative AI in everything else it does. "I can only speak to what I work on," he replied to one such inquiry. "From a purely personal level, I'm not a fan of AI because what makes art so special is the human connection and feeling. Be it through art, music, or any creative medium -- it's something I never want to see replaced by AI."