Labor & Employment Law Daily Wrap Up, LABOR NEWS—Fortnite’s use of AI-generated Darth Vader voice results in NLRB charge by SAG-AFTRA, (May 20, 2025)
Organizations Mentioned:Epic Games, Inc. | Llama Productions LLC | National Labor Relations Board | SAG-AFTRA
By Patricia K. Ruiz, J.D.
SAG-AFTRA argued Llama Productions and Epic Games should have given it the opportunity to bargain for its workers.
The Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) against Llama Productions LLC, the signatory company of the video game Fortnite, alleging the company replaced the work of human performers with artificial intelligence (AI) technology without providing notice of their intent to do so and without bargaining with the union over appropriate terms. The family of James Earl Jones agreed to the use of an AI-generated version of his voice.
Use of AI-generated voice. In an FAQ, Epic Games, Inc., which owns Llama Productions, explained that, when a player talks with Darth Vader, it securely sends voice audio to Google’s Gemini 2.0 Flash model to generate Darth Vader’s response. The audio itself is generated by ElevenLabs’ Flash v2.5 model. Users’ voice audio and transcriptions of it are not stored, and if a user reports something said by Darth Vader, Epic Games will only receive Darth Vader’s responses. Epic Games said that it does not use any of users’ interactions with the character to train AI models.
In its NLRB charge, SAG-AFTRA alleged that, within the past six months, the employer, Llama Productions, failed and refused to bargain in good faith with the union by making unilateral changes to terms and conditions of employment, without providing notice to the union or the opportunity to bargain. Llama Productions did so, according to SAG-AFTRA, by utilizing AI-generated voices to replace bargaining unit work on the interactive program Fortnite.
Agreement of James Earl Jones’s estate. The family of James Earl Jones agreed to have an AI-generated version of his voice used in Fortnite. In a statement, Epic Games included a quote from the family, who said, “James Earl felt that the voice of Darth Vader was inseparable from the story of Star Wars, and he always wanted fans of all ages to continue to experience it. We hope this collaboration with Fortnite will allow both longtime fans of Darth Vader and newer generations to share in the enjoyment of this iconic character.”
“Darth Vader wouldn’t be nearly as sinister without the legendary performance of James Earl Jones, who voiced Vader in the Star Wars films,” Epic Games said in its statement. “We’re honored to feature the voice of the late Mr. Jones and we thank his estate for the opportunity to make this happen for players.”
“We celebrate the right of our members and their estates to control the use of their digital replicas and welcome the use of new technologies to allow new generations to share in the enjoyment of those legacies and renowned roles,” SAG-AFTRA said in a press release. “However, we must protect our right to bargain terms and conditions around uses of voice that replace the work of our members, including those who previously did the work of matching Darth Vader’s iconic rhythm and tone in video games.”
Companies: Epic Games, Inc.; Llama Productions LLC
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