Hollywood’s major unions and studios are calling out Beijing‑based ByteDance over a new artificial intelligence video generator, Seedance 2.0, accusing the company of using copyrighted material and actors’ likenesses without permission. The criticism, first reported by MyNorthwest, centers on concerns that the tool—currently available only in China—engages in what the Motion Picture Association describes as “unauthorized use of U.S. copyrighted works on a massive scale.”

Seedance 2.0 allows users to generate detailed AI‑produced videos from simple text prompts. Public demonstrations circulating online have shown the technology recreating the likenesses of well‑known actors such as Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt in fabricated scenes, intensifying fears that the tool can replicate protected performances without consent.

In a statement issued Tuesday, Motion Picture Association chairman and CEO Charles Rivkin said ByteDance “should immediately cease its infringing activity,” arguing that the company has launched a system “without meaningful safeguards against infringement.”

SAG‑AFTRA echoed that criticism Friday, stating that Seedance 2.0 “disregards law, ethics, industry standards and basic principles of consent,” and warning that unregulated replication of performers’ voices and likenesses “undercuts the ability of human talent to earn a livelihood.”

Concerns about the technology’s impact are not limited to Hollywood. Independent filmmakers, video editors, and digital artists across Washington State—including those working in Longview and Kelso—rely on clear copyright boundaries to protect their work. Local creators routinely publish short films, commercial work, and digital art portfolios, and many already navigate growing anxiety about unauthorized AI training and imitation.

ByteDance has not issued a public explanation responding to the allegations as of Sunday.

Cowlitz County’s creative community may feel distant from Hollywood’s contract disputes, but the underlying issues—consent, control over one’s own work, and the economic impact of unlicensed AI systems—have immediate local relevance. Regional creators often operate on thin margins. If AI systems can freely ingest and reproduce copyrighted material without permission, smaller markets are among the most vulnerable.

Local schools, small production companies, and independent contractors increasingly rely on digital media for income. Rapid expansion of AI video tools without enforceable safeguards could shift competitive dynamics even more sharply, potentially affecting jobs and contract opportunities in southwest Washington’s growing creative sector.

As national debates around AI regulation continue, communities like Longview and Kelso will likely confront similar questions about how to protect locally produced creative work in an environment where digital replication—even of real people—can be generated in seconds.