Arcane: Riot Games is angry with Netflix

Netflix used generative artificial intelligence for a promotional tool for the series Arcane. Which did not please Riot Games, creator of League of Legends.

« I feel stupid, but what's going on with Jinx's hand? », asks Internet user egg in a tweet published on November 20. A message accompanied by a screenshot, in which we see a promotional poster for the series Arcane. There is indeed a problem with the heroine's hand, which looks monstrous (it looks like two superimposed hands) and does not at all honor the artistic direction imagined by Fortiche Production.

egg was right: there is indeed a problem with this artwork, which is in reality the enlarged version of a poster (where Jinx's hand is perfect). And, alas, Netflix apparently used generative artificial intelligence to extend the image (so that it is more adapted to its application, by obtaining a banner), hence this rendering which is not not completely successful. The streaming platform has since removed it, and Riot Games has publicly reacted to this error, which amounts to a lack of respect.

Modified promotional poster of Arcane (with a horrible hand) // Source: Twitter Egg

Netflix used AI for a posterArcane

In charge of brands at Riot Games, the studio behind League of Legends (from which is taken Arcane), Alex Shahmiri did not hide his anger on X (ex-Twitter): “ I appreciate you sharing this. We have a strict policy on not using AI in Arcane, as it is a huge disrespect to the incredible artists who worked on the series. This image was an error and has since been removed. »

This tweet suggests that Riot Games is not at the origin of this promotional tool, which vandalized the work of Fortiche Production. And, obviously, the French studio would not sabotage itself by calling on an AI to make its task easier, given the immense work done to give birth to Arcane. The fault therefore clearly lies with Netflix, which wanted to move quickly and make some savings.

Arcane promotional poster // Source: Netflix — Arcane promotional poster (with a normal hand) // Source: Netflix

The streaming platform has simply forgotten that fans have a keen eye and that the creations obtained by a generative AI, certainly more and more stunning, are still too perfectible to create the illusion. The hands, in particular, are very difficult to reproduce. Sometimes there is even confusion, like this poster for the film Thunderbolt*wrongly accused. But in the case ofArcanethere is a fault on the part of Netflix, and we imagine that Fortiche Production must not have appreciated this freedom taken by the multinational.