Will Smith responded to backlash over an AI-generated concert video by posting a humorous Instagram clip showing him performing and a crowd replaced with cats. The playful approach framed the mistake as self-deprecating and served as effective PR for most of the general public. The flawed deepfakes did not convince viewers and exposed a creative problem: brands choosing AI over skilled video editors. Many teams appear uninformed about obvious AI signifiers, raising concerns about wider AI rollout in creative applications. The incident harms perceptions of AI and underscores the need for stronger creative oversight and technical literacy.
Will Smith has responded to the storm that's surrounding his AI generated concert video, and actually I have to hand it to him - it's perfect PR. When you're being called out for faking a crowd in an attempt to forge a comeback, it's not a good look and you'd be forgiven for handling it badly. But Will has posted a pretty hilarious response, which will be more than enough for most people to forgive him - even if it doesn't deal with a pretty major problem, creatively.
However, for a large proportion of the creative community this won't go quite far enough. Sure, it's possible to see the debacle for what it is on the surface - a blunder that really only throws shade on Will and his team. But the incident uncovers a more worrying pattern of a brand choosing AI over a skilled video editor, and being obtuse enough not to know that the majority of people can see the obvious signifiers of AI.
While Will could have posted a grovelling apology, or simple acknowledgement of the controversy, humour is the best way to save a brand in certain situations. And this is a wry nod to his blunder, showing a willingness to laugh at himself - which is very needed in this case. At least, that's how most of the general public will see it so from a PR perspective this works on the whole.
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