Paramount Pictures
Artificial intelligence is being used in increasingly controversial ways, such as using it to create fake advertising for a “Willy Wonka experience.”
According to reports, police in Glasgow, Scotland, had to show up to a “Willy Wonka experience” after it was revealed that the organizers had used AI to create fake images of what patrons could expect.
The event reportedly left some children “in tears,” according to The Guardian.
“The event organizer, House of Illuminati, which charged up to £35 for tickets to the immersive experience, promised a ‘celebration of sweetness and imagination’ based on the Warner Bros film Wonka, starring Timothée Chalamet as the young chocolate entrepreneur, which was an instant hit with children and grownups over the festive period.”
“The event publicity promised giant mushrooms, candy canes, and chocolate fountains, along with special audio and visual effects, all narrated by dancing Oompa-Loompas – the tiny, orange men who power Wonka’s chocolate factory in the Roald Dahl book which inspired the prequel film.” [via The Guardian]
Instead, when people showed up at the “experience”, they found a janky, almost frightening set-up that featured “plastic props, a small bouncy castle, and some backdrops pinned against the walls.”
“My heart sank looking around… I just felt sad because I was aware of how many kids were going to be coming through. We were told to hand the kids a couple of jelly beans and a quarter cup of lemonade at the end,” an actor who was hired to work at the event told Scotland’s STV News.
To their credit, the organizers owned the mistake, saying in a statement that it was a “very stressful and frustrating day” and that they would be refunding customers.
Wonka, which starred Timothee Chalamet as the famous fictional chocolatier, was released in theaters on December 15, 2023, and has since grossed over $600 million at the global box office.
The film was the third live-action movie to feature the character, following 1971’s Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory and 2005’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.