Last year, as FCC chair Brendan Carr threatened ABC over a Jimmy Kimmel monologue, a civil servant overseeing West Coast stations privately pledged support, according to emails obtained by WIRED. A senior Federal Communications Commission official overseeing ABC-owned California stations privately offered to assist FCC Chairman Brendan Carr's campaign last year against the Walt Disney Co. and, according to internal emails obtained by WIRED. On September 17, Carr threatened Disney with regulatory action regarding the Jimmy Kimmel monologue about the assassination of Charlie Kirk, prompting major station affiliates to drop the broadcast and forcing ABC to temporarily suspend the show. The email, obtained via the Freedom of Information Act, was titled "personal note of support re Charlie Kirk ABC/Disney issue" and quoted Carr's remarks from an interview with conservative podcaster Benny Johnson: "This is a very, very serious issue right now for Disney. We can do this the easy way or the hard way," Carr said during the interview.

ByteDance's new AI video tool Seedance 2.0 can generate videos based on just a few lines of text. ByteDance's new AI video tool Seedance 2.0 can generate videos based on just a few lines of text. Videos created by new Seedance 2.0 generator go viral, including one of Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt fighting Mon 16 Feb 2026 03.25 ESTLast modified on Mon 16 Feb 2026 03.29 EST ByteDance, the Chinese technology company behind TikTok, has said it will restrain its AI video-making tool, after threats of legal action from Disney and a backlash from other media businesses, according to reports. The AI video generator Seedance 2.0, released last week, has spooked Hollywood as users create realistic clips of movie stars and superheroes with just a short text prompt. On Friday, Walt Disney reportedly sent a cease-and-desist letter to ByteDance which accused it of supplying Seedance with a "pirated library" of the studio's characters, including those from Marvel and Star Wars, according to the US news outlet Axios. Disney's lawyers claimed that ByteDance committed a "virtual smash-and-grab" of their intellectual property, according to a report from the BBC.

Chinese technology giant ByteDance has pledged to curb a controversial artificial intelligence (AI) video-making tool, following threats of legal action from Disney and complaints from other entertainment giants. In the last few days, videos made using the latest version of the app Seedance have proliferated online. Many have been lauded for their realism. Disney's lawyers accused ByteDance of committing a virtual smash-and-grab of their intellectual property, including superheroes from Marvel, Star Wars and various cartoons. On Monday ByteDance told the BBC that the company respects intellectual property rights and we have heard the concerns regarding Seedance 2.0.

Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2026 is Feb. 25 Valve's Steam Machine: Everything we know Even though ByteDance just released Seedance 2.0 on Thursday, it's already earned praise, but also indignation from Hollywood studios, when it comes to its AI-generating capabilities. With the strong early momentum, Seedance has already found itself in hot water with one of the largest media companies in the world. However, it's not the first time that Disney has threatened legal action against an AI company, since Character.AI received a cease-and-desist letter for the same offense in September. On the other hand, Disney partnered with OpenAI in a three-year licensing agreement that allows the AI giant to generate images and videos using that highly sought-after intellectual property. By subscribing, you are agreeing to Engadget's Terms and Privacy Policy .

Disney advert banned for showing'disturbing' severed body A menacing Disney advert featuring a severed body has been banned by the advertising regulator, which said it was likely to frighten and cause distress to children. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) found the entertainment giant had broken its rules with its advert for the Predator Badlands film. Parents complained that the digital poster, which featured a large alien holding aloft the severed body of a smaller, human figure, was inappropriate and disturbing for young children. Disney said the severed body was actually that of a robot, and the fact it had been cut in two further emphasised its non-human nature. The advert, which was seen on the roadside in Giffnock, Glasgow, was promoting the Disney sci-fi film ahead of its release in November.

Ashton Kutcher: Hollywood isn't to blame for pushing unrealistic beauty standards US actor Ashton Kutcher has said he believes Hollywood is not pushing unreasonably high beauty standards, adding that wider society is to blame for the increasing desire to look perfect. The 47-year-old is currently starring in science fiction show The Beauty, which sees a drug become available that can transform a person into the most attractive version of themselves. Speaking to BBC News, Kutcher said he does not believe the film and TV industry is imparting the need for aesthetic homogeny. Entertainment is a reflection of society, he said. Across the different characters and actors in shows, some are traditionally handsome but others are just really interesting, he said.

Adverts will soon appear at the top of the AI tool ChatGPT for some users, the company OpenAI has announced. The trial will initially take place in the US, and will affect some ChatGPT users on the free service and a new subscription tier, called ChatGPT Go. This cheaper option will be available for all users worldwide, and will cost $8 a month, or the equivalent pricing in other currencies. OpenAI says during the trial, relevant ads will appear after a prompt - for example, asking ChatGPT for places to visit in Mexico could result in holiday ads appearing. In example screenshots shared by the firm, the ads look like banners.

The Industry Disney's Deal With OpenAI Is So Much Worse Than You Think The $1 billion partnership allows users to create A.I.-generated images of the company's iconic characters. That's not going to end well for anyone. Enter your email to receive alerts for this author. You can manage your newsletter subscriptions at any time. You're already subscribed to the aa_Nitish_Pahwa newsletter.

Users of OpenAI's video generation app will soon be able to see their own faces alongside characters from Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars and Disney's animated films, according to a joint announcement from the startup and Disney on Thursday. Perhaps you, Lightning McQueen and Iron Man are all dancing together in the Mos Eisley Cantina. Sora is an app made by OpenAI, the firm behind ChatGPT, which allows users to generate videos of up to 20 seconds through short text prompts. Disney announced that it would invest $1bn in OpenAI and, under a three-year deal perhaps worth even more than that large sum, that it would license about 200 of its iconic characters - from R2-D2 to Stitch - for users to play with in OpenAI's video generation app. Examples of content generated by OpenAI's Sora with Disney properties.

It's no accident the company picked a partner it could control. This morning Disney and OpenAI announced a three-year licensing agreement: Starting in 2026, ChatGPT and Sora can generate images and videos incorporating Disney IP, including more than 200 characters from the company's stable of Star Wars, Pixar and Marvel brands. To say these companies make for strange bedfellows is an understatement. Before OpenAI released Sora, the company reportedly notified studios and talent agencies they would need to opt out of having their work appear in the new app. The law effectively froze the advancement of the public domain in the United States, with Disney being the greatest beneficiary. On the face of it, it's unclear OpenAI is getting much value out of the deal.