Doug Cockle, the voice behind Geralt in The Witcher franchise, has taken swipe at AI platforms that utilize his voices, expressing his desire to sue every single one of them, if he could.
The growth of AI in the gaming industry has led to plenty of concerns, and one of the issues for voice actors is their likeness being utilized in ways they did not intend.
Speaking to Polygon, Cockle explained his fear that they could make Geralt say “horrible things,” and that, if he could, he would “sue every single” platform into the ground.
“If I had the power, the money, and the influence, I would sue every single AI platform out there with my voice on it. I would sue them into the ground,” he said.
“More than money or anything else is that they could make Geralt say horrible things. They could make Geralt a racist. They could make him a misogynist. They could make him have political views that are absolutely horrific.
“I’m being a little bit passionate about this, but it is the bugbear of my life at the moment. There are people behind these voices. They’re not just digital imprints.”
This isn’t the first time Cockle has been outspoken with his criticism of generative AI, telling IGN in 2023 that it is already leading to some areas where voice actors would have previously been used now using AI instead.
“They’re already doing it in various ways, filling in background, NPC voices, things like that, which is unfortunate because those voices were all human beings at one point, and the voices are all modelled on human being.
“So they have taken someone’s voice, put it into their database, digitized it and are using it to say things that the individual never said. There’s something unethical about that and so there’s a lot of debate going on.”
The use of AI and the concerns aren’t just limited to video games, and it is a hot topic across a wid range of industries, and it’s certainly not going to be the last time a recognizable face hits out at the use of the technology.
Published: Aug 12, 2026 09:13 am