Texas-born Hollywood actor Matthew McConaughey is combatting artificial intelligence by trademarking himself.
That includes not only his own likeness but his iconic catchphrase “Alright, alright, alright,” first uttered in Dazed and Confused, the coming-of-age stoner film that gave him his breakout role.
The Oscar-winning actor also known for Dallas Buyers Club, Interstellar, True Detective, Contact and other film and streaming projects secured eight trademarks from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, the Wall Street Journal reports.
This makes McConaughey among the first celebrities vying to establish legal precedent against AI misuse, including fake images, audio and video manipulation of his likeness with the use of AI tools.
The intent of the trademarks, McConaughey’s lawyer told the Wall Street Journal, is not only to protect against misuse of his digital identity, but also to capitalize off of any authorized use.
“My team and I want to know that when my voice or likeness is ever used, it’s because I approved and signed off on it,” McConaughey told the Wall Street Journal.
However, McConaughey is no crusader against AI. Indeed, he’s embraced it and even invested considerably in it.
For example, the actor was an early investor in Elevenlabs, an AI company, which he uses to release a Spanish language version of his newsletter “Lyrics of Livin.”
However, other celebrities have seen the dark side of celebrity deepfakes — including Taylor Swift, whose likeness was used in sexually explicit content that went viral on several platforms in January 2024 before being scrubbed from the internet.
Swift’s experience led lawmakers to introduce the bipartisan No AIFRAUD Act. However, the bill died on the vine without being passed.
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