Hollywood organizations are pushing again in opposition to a brand new AI video mannequin known as Seedance 2.0, which they are saying has shortly develop into a device for “blatant” copyright infringement.
ByteDance, the Chinese language firm that not too long ago finalized a deal to promote TikTok’s U.S. operations (it retains a stake within the new three way partnership), launched Seedance 2.0 earlier this week. According to the Wall Street Journal, the up to date mannequin is at the moment obtainable to Chinese language customers of ByteDance’s Jianying app, and the corporate says it is going to quickly be obtainable to international customers of its CapCut app.
Much like instruments equivalent to OpenAI’s Sora, Seedance permits customers to create movies (at the moment restricted to fifteen seconds in size) by simply coming into a textual content immediate. And like Sora, Seedance shortly drew criticism for an obvious lack of guardrails across the capability to create movies utilizing the likeness of actual folks, in addition to studios’ mental property.
After one X person posted a brief video exhibiting Tom Cruise combating Brad Pitt, which they mentioned was created by “a 2 line immediate in seedance 2,” “Deadpool” screenwriter Rhett Reese responded, “I hate to say it. It’s seemingly over for us.”
The Movement Image Affiliation quickly issued a statement from CEO Charles Rivkin demanding that ByteDance “instantly stop its infringing exercise.”
“In a single day, the Chinese language AI service Seedance 2.0 has engaged in unauthorized use of U.S. copyrighted works on a large scale,” Rivkin mentioned. “By launching a service that operates with out significant safeguards in opposition to infringement, ByteDance is disregarding well-established copyright legislation that protects the rights of creators and underpins hundreds of thousands of American jobs.”
The Human Artistry Marketing campaign — an initiative backed by Hollywood unions and commerce teams — condemned Seedance 2.0 as “an assault one very creator around the globe,” whereas the actors’ union SAG-AFTRA said it “stands with the studios in condemning the blatant infringement enabled by Bytedance’s new AI video mannequin Seedance 2.0.”
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June 23, 2026
Seedance movies have apparently featured Disney-owned characters equivalent to Spider-Man, Darth Vader, and Grogu, higher often known as Child Yoda, prompting the corporate to take authorized motion. Axios reports that Disney has sent a cease-and-desist letter accusing ByteDance of a “digital smash-and-grab of Disney’s IP”and claiming the Chinese language firm is “hijacking Disney’s characters by reproducing, distributing, and creating spinoff works that includes these characters.”
Disney isn’t essentially against working with AI corporations — whereas it has reportedly despatched a cease-and-desist letter to Google over related points, it’s signed a three-year licensing cope with OpenAI.
Variety reports that Paramount adopted go well with by sending Bytedance a cease-and-desist letter on Saturday. The letter claimed that “a lot of the content material that the Seed Platforms produce accommodates vivid depictions of Paramount’s well-known and iconic franchises and characters” and that this content material “is commonly indistinguishable, each visually and audibly” from Paramount’s movies and TV exhibits.
TechCrunch has reached out to ByteDance for remark.
This submit was initially revealed on February 14, 2026. It has been up to date to incorporate details about Paramount’s cease-and-desist letter.
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