Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on December 18, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 20, 2026
UK actors overwhelmingly vote against digital scans, demanding stronger AI protections, echoing Hollywood's recent battles.
By Sam Tabahriti
LONDON, Dec 18 (Reuters) - British film and television performers have voted overwhelmingly to refuse digital body scans unless they are given stronger protections against artificial intelligence, the actors' union Equity said on Thursday.
Digital body scans are increasingly used in film and TV for crowd scenes, stunt work, de-aging and virtual performances. They capture detailed facial and body features to create lifelike so-called digital doubles.
Equity said 99.6% of members backed the move in an indicative ballot, with a turnout of 75% among more than 7,700 actors, stunt performers and dancers covered by agreements with trade body PACT, which represents most UK production companies.
While the vote is not legally binding, the union warned it could call a statutory strike ballot if talks fail when they resume in January, threatening disruption to productions that account for about 90% of UK film and TV work.
The vote underscores growing global concern over the use of AI to replicate performers' likenesses without consent or extra pay.
U.S. actors' union SAG-AFTRA staged a four-month strike in 2023 over similar issues, which was estimated to have cost California more than $6 billion in lost output and forced studios to agree limits on AI use.
"We need adequate AI protections which build on, not merely replicate, those agreed after the SAG-AFTRA strike in the USA over two years ago," Paul Fleming, the union's general secretary, said in a statement.
Equity said it wants protections including explicit consent, transparency and fair remuneration.
"With fresh AI proposals, significant movement on royalties, and a package of modern terms and conditions, PACT and allied producers can turn this around," Fleming added.
(Reporting by Sam Tabahriti; editing by William James)
A digital body scan is a technology used in film and television to capture detailed facial and body features, creating lifelike digital doubles for crowd scenes, stunts, or virtual performances.
Artificial intelligence (AI) refers to the simulation of human intelligence in machines, enabling them to perform tasks such as learning, reasoning, and problem-solving.
Equity is a trade union representing British film and television performers, advocating for their rights and protections, especially concerning issues like AI and digital likeness.
Digital doubles are computer-generated replicas of actors used in films and TV shows to perform stunts or appear in scenes without the actual actor being present.
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