Armorwith Sylvester Stallone, will it be the first feature film to use dubbing by artificial intelligence? Yes, according to certain media and commentators, who claim that this premiere was made possible thanks to an agreement between a start-up… and the minister and MP Aurore Bergé, to exploit the voice of her deceased father. At the origin of this “information”, a press release published on January 10 by the start-up ElevenLabs, specializing in AI dubbing.
Enough to ignite social networks, which widely relayed the information, as well as a VF trailer for the film. We hear the AI reproduction of the voice of Alain Dorval, iconic voice actor of the American actor, who died in February 2024 and therefore father of Aurore Bergé, the current Minister Delegate in charge of Equality between women and men. men and heavyweights of the presidential party. But the mechanical interpretation struggles to convince Internet users, who are outraged at the replacement of the actors’ work by AI. As a bonus, some comments accuse Aurore Bergé of deriving a financial advantage from the use of her father’s voice. Unfounded accusations. Because a lot of things are inaccurate in the flood of publications on the subject.
In its January 10 publication on X – now deleted – the start-up ElevenLabs promises that Armor sera “premiered in France, as the first feature film to use our AI dubbing”, in March 2025 on Prime Video. The stated objective: to reproduce the famous French voice of Sylvester Stallone.
ElevenLabs mentions an agreement with the company Lumiere Ventures and the family of Alain Dorval, including Aurore Bergé. “We wanted to do something that paid homage to my father’s craftsmanship and legacy,” is she cited in the start-up’s publication X, which an Internet user took a screenshot of. ElevenLabs attaches the controversial trailer, not affiliated with Prime Video, the film’s broadcaster.
A few hours after the announcement, the information was taken up by the specialist magazine Variety in an article titled “The film Armor by Sylvester Stallone will be dubbed by artificial intelligence thanks to a new technological partnership (EXCLUSIVE)”. The article repeats quotes from the initial ElevenLabs publication, including that of Lumiere Ventures co-founder Xavier Collins for whom “AI makes it possible to offer coherent and localized versions of films while respecting the heritage of the dubbers”.
“I have never validated such a broadcast”
But the same day, Aurore Bergé adds an annoyed clarification, in a comment on the publication on X by ElevenLabs. “I agreed to a trial. only a test. An agreement strictly guaranteeing that my mother and I would undergo final validation before any use/publication. And that nothing could be done without our agreement. […] I have never validated such a broadcast.”
Despite Aurore Bergé’s statement, many media such as Huffington Post, Telerama or even The Parisianpublished articles on January 11 asserting that Alain Dorval and his voice reproduced by AI “will therefore be Sylvester Stallone’s French dubber for his new film Armor».
Asked by CheckNews on the origin of her sources, the journalist from Huffington Post explains having trusted “exclusivity” of Variety. “It implied they had information.” Contacted, the journalist from Variety did not respond. Near CheckNews, Aurore Bergé formally denies the information from Variety. “A dubbing with an actor has been carried out for several months. There is therefore no replacement of an actor by AI, explains Aurore Bergé to CheckNews. No commercial release was ever planned with “on” voice and the use of AI.”
-“A French dubbing already exists with another actor”
Contacted by CheckNewsPrime Video confirms that the dubbing of Sylvester Stallone in the film will be provided by Michel Vigné. The actor is the regular voice of Mickey Rourke and Michael Wincott, but he has already lent his voice to Sylvester Stallone in the film High SecurityFor example.
The company ILY Films, with which Aurore Bergé discusses the question of dubbing, confirms CheckNews that there is a finalized dubbed version ofArmor with Michel Vigné. ILY Films finally confirms that the dubbing was carried out in France, in Boulogne, by the dubbing company IMDA.
On Monday, ElevenLabs and Lumiere Ventures released a joint statement, after both being contacted by Checknews. The two companies backpedal and confirm the information given by Aurore Bergé. “A French dub already exists with another actor, but recreating Alain Dorval’s voice is a tribute to his long-standing role as the voice of Stallone.”
“The family joined forces with the filmmakers for free”
However, the two companies do not seem to have completely given up on the possibility of dubbing using the reconstructed voice of Alain Dorval. “We have agreed that if the quality bar is not met, the film will be released with traditional dubbing – the family retains full control and will decide if and how this AI dubbing is used.”
Asked by CheckNewsAurore Bergé closes the door to this possibility. “They wrote in black and white that no commercial vocation existed. So the film will be released with an actor for dubbing.”
Aurore Bergé and her mother have given their consent for a test on the AI reproduction of Alain Dorval’s voice on the film Armor. But this test was carried out in parallel with the commercial release of the film. The January 13 press release from ElevenLabs further specifies that “Alain Dorval’s family joined forces with the filmmakers for free.”
For Aurore Bergé it was, as stated in the first press release dated January 10 from ElevenLabs, “to pay homage to the know-how and heritage of my father”. Near CheckNews, she recalls Alain Dorval’s union commitment to the CFDT in favor of the rights of performing artists. He actually appears as a press contact for the CFDT in a press release announcing a manifesto on “the risks that generative artificial intelligence poses to our professions”.
