Chinese production company debuts AI actors with faces resembling real celebrities
A Chinese production company announced its first AI actors, Lin Xiyan and Qin Lingyue, which online users reported appeared to combine facial features of multiple real celebrities. A lawyer stated the AI actors face high legal risk for portrait rights infringement, while observers expressed concern about the impact on human actors and the entertainment industry.
What happened
On March 18, 2026, Chinese film and television production company Yaoke Media announced the debut of two AI actors, Lin Xiyan and Qin Lingyue, with accompanying social media accounts on Little Red Book and Douyin, and roles in a new drama called "The Bronze Mystery of Qinling."
Online users quickly noted that Lin Xiyan's appearance resembled features of actresses Zhao Jinmai, Zhang Zifeng, and Liang Jie, while Qin Lingyue appeared similar to actor Zhai Zilu. A lawyer from Beijing's Yingke Law Firm stated that AI actors whose appearance combines multiple celebrities face high legal risks and may constitute both civil infringement and unfair competition.
Reported impact
Some online users called for the named actresses to pursue legal action against the company, with others threatening to boycott the AI actors.
Industry observers noted concerns about the impact on the entertainment sector, with some expressing worry about uncontrolled AI development affecting industry ecology and the displacement of human actors.
Index analysis
The core legal question is whether the AI actors' appearance meets the standard of 'identifiability' for portrait right infringement. According to the lawyer quoted, if the general public can directly and clearly associate the AI image with a specific real celebrity, and facial features are highly consistent, this could constitute portrait rights infringement even if the face is synthetic or fictional.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.