Aussie acting royalty Russell Crowe has warned his fans not to be fooled by a deepfake ad in which he appears to endorse a business renting and selling properties in Malta.
The Gladiator actor posted the “fake” commercial on X/Twitter on Monday and warned his followers not to be duped into thinking he endorsed the Maltese property company.
“This is going around in Malta. It is obviously fake BS, don’t fall for it,” Crowe wrote. “What else is obvious is that this service/business must be shonky and underhanded to resort to this way of promoting itself. Block, report, ignore. I’ve never used this service & I do not endorse this BS.”
In the video, grainy footage of Crowe appears in front of clips of Maltese locations, properties and the company’s app. In an odd, robotic voice, he praises the app and says he “personally” used it while staying in Malta.
“This app is a game-changer when it comes to finding exclusive homes for rent or purchase in Malta,” the 59-year-old actor said.
Watch the fake ad below:
This is going around in Malta. It is obviously fake BS, don’t fall for it. What else is obvious is that this service/business must be shonky and underhanded to resort to this way of promoting itself. Block, report, ignore. I’ve never used this service & I do not endorse this BS. pic.twitter.com/gx59vwK6X6
— Russell Crowe (@russellcrowe) January 22, 2024
And Crowe isn’t the first mega star to get caught up in deepfake advertising.
Last October, Tom Hanks’ image was used to promote a dental plan he knew nothing about.
“BEWARE!! There’s a video out there promoting some dental plan with an AI version of me,’ Hanks captioned a still from the commercial. “I have nothing to do with it.”
Earlier this month an AI version of none other than Taylor Swift was used promote Le Creuset cookware in another advert scam.
