Netflix Users Call New No. 1 Show’s Feature ‘Embarrassing’

Netflix subscribers are voicing dissatisfaction over the use of artificial intelligence in the latest hit docuseries.

“Dirty Pop: The Boyband Scam” premiered on Netflix on Wednesday, 24 July, and quickly ascended to No. 1 in the UK’s Top 10 TV shows. Despite its popularity, the series has sparked controversy for utilizing AI to replicate the voice and image of its subject, the late Lou Pearlman.

The three-part series narrates both the meteoric rise and the fall from grace of Pearlman, the mastermind behind iconic 1990s boy bands like Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC. Pearlman passed away in 2016 at age 62 while in federal custody, after being convicted of conspiracy, money laundering, and making false statements during bankruptcy proceedings.

Viewers are notified within the first three minutes of episode one that digitally altered footage of Pearlman will be used to narrate his writings throughout the series. “This footage has been digitally altered to generate his voice and synchronize his lips,” reads a message on the screen. “The words were written by Lou in his book, Bands, Brands & Billions.”

Several viewers took to social media platforms like X (previously known as Twitter) to express their discontentment with this choice.

“To whoever decided to make AI Lou Pearlman the narrator of this Dirty Pop documentary on Netflix, I hope you step on a lego. This is embarrassing,” wrote one user.

Another critic said, “The use of AI is so off-putting and terrible that it’s making it unbearable to finish the series. It makes the doc actively worse and it’s super distracting! Why even bother?”

A third viewer remarked, “Watching the Dirty Pop documentary. So far so good, but the use of the AI-generated voice is not necessary. Really hope this doesn’t become a trend – won’t be able to tell what’s real and what’s fake anymore.”

Many shared similar sentiments, with another user adding, “I’m not looking at that for three hours,” and someone else commenting, “I can’t stop cringing every time the AI pops up. I don’t get what they were thinking.”

In response to the backlash, executive producer Michael Johnson explained the decision to use AI in a new interview on Saturday, 27 July. “We secured Lou’s life rights; we only used words written by Lou himself; we hired an actor to deliver those words; we used real footage of Lou in order to capture his true mannerisms and body language; and we hired AI experts from MIT Media Lab, Pinscreen, and Resemble AI to execute our vision,” Johnson said.

Elaborating further, Johnson emphasized, “It was important for us to convey Lou’s written words this way because his writing reflects his reality and the reality he wanted everyone to believe. With the AI spread across the series, the viewer experiences the difference between Lou’s reality and the reality that the rest of the world experienced. This juxtaposition is essential to understanding Lou as a human being as well as a devious con man.”

“Dirty Pop” also incorporates interviews with members of Backstreet Boys and *NSYNC, who discuss their troubled relationship with Pearlman. Both bands publicly severed ties with him, alleging improper compensation despite their massive success.

In 1998, Backstreet Boys sued Pearlman, claiming they had earned only $300,000 since 1993 while Pearlman allegedly profited $10 million, according to Forbes. The following year, *NSYNC also sued to extricate themselves from their contract with Pearlman’s record company, Trans Continental Records.

Pearlman later faced further legal issues when it was discovered he was conducting one of the largest Ponzi schemes in American history. In 2008, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison for defrauding investors out of more than $300 million. He died of cardiac arrest eight years later while in federal custody in Miami.

Reflecting on Pearlman’s demise in the documentary, *NSYNC’s Chris Kirkpatrick stated, “I think we should remember Lou as a crook who got what he deserved in the end, and there are people that are still in pain and hurting because of his actions.”

Source: Twitter, Netflix, Forbes