Joy Behar challenged Sunny Hostin over her decision to license her name and likeness to an artificial intelligence studio, arguing that the arrangement could contribute to real people losing work.
The disagreement took place on The View, where Behar, 83, questioned Hostin, 57, about her partnership with AI start-up Fountain 0. Hostin said the deal could help bring diverse stories to the screen despite what she described as Hollywood’s reluctance to back them.
Hostin said Fountain 0 had made Dream of Violets, directed by Ash Koosha, which was released at the Tribeca Film Festival. The production does not feature human stars, with actors, sets and cameras replaced by artificial intelligence models.
“One of the other reasons why I partnered with this company is because I’ve written a trilogy and for six years I’ve tried to get my stories made into a series or films,” Hostin said.
The lawyer and author, who has written the books Summer on the Bluffs, Summer on Sag Harbor and Summer on Highland Beach, said: “The gatekeeping in Hollywood around black and brown creative content is insane. I cannot get New York Times bestselling books onto the screen to tell diverse stories to diverse communities.”
When Behar asked what that had to do with AI, Hostin replied: “AI cuts out the gatekeeping. You get to make your film. You get to have a director.”
Alyssa Farah Griffin then asked whether the project included actors. Hostin replied that they were generated, adding that she might also appear in AI form because she had licensed her image to the company.
“So you’re a robot now?” Behar asked.
Hostin said the arrangement could offer a route to take a completed project to a streaming service. “It’s a way, I think, to get black and brown stories told. There are a lot of hidden figures out there. Those stories are not being told,” she said.
Behar remained critical, responding: “Those people are in fact robots. How does that help the black community? Because the real people are not working.”
Hostin argued that studios were already refusing to make such projects, saying: “But I’m not the person putting them out of work because the studios just won’t make these projects.”
Behar pressed her further over the ethical questions surrounding the agreement and said the writers, directors and actors Hostin was concerned about were being left without work. Hostin replied that she had considered the ethical issues but believed diverse stories needed to be told.
Hostin signed the licensing agreement on 27 August. At the time, she said: “To be able to bring my novels to life in movie and TV form, and actually have my image inserted in the productions, so that audiences can relate to me through my stories beyond my role as an author, is incredibly exciting to me.”
She added that Fountain 0’s approach to filmmaking gave her confidence that AI could allow her to develop and immerse herself more fully in the intellectual property she had created.
Hostin launched Roots & Wings Productions in May 2021 and has several projects in development, although none has yet been released.
Despite their disagreements on air, Behar and Hostin have been close friends for years.
