TL;DR

ByteDance has said it will strengthen safeguards on Seedance 2.0, its AI video generator, after Disney sent a cease-and-desist letter accusing it of a “virtual smash-and-grab” of intellectual property. The Motion Picture Association and actors’ union SAG-AFTRA have also accused ByteDance of mass copyright infringement.

What prompted the response

Seedance 2.0, released last week, allows users to generate realistic video clips from short text prompts. The tool quickly drew attention when users created clips featuring recognisable movie stars and copyrighted characters, including those from Marvel and Star Wars.

Disney accused ByteDance of supplying Seedance with a “pirated library” of its characters and sent a cease-and-desist letter, according to reports from Axios and the BBC. The Motion Picture Association, representing studios including Paramount, Warner Bros, and Netflix, accused ByteDance of “unauthorised use of US copyrighted works on a massive scale.” SAG-AFTRA called it “blatant infringement.”

Deadpool & Wolverine co-writer Rhett Reese said “it’s likely over for us” after watching a widely shared AI-generated clip of Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt fighting, predicting that “one person is going to be able to sit at a computer and create a movie indistinguishable from what Hollywood now releases.”

ByteDance’s response

ByteDance told the BBC it “respects intellectual property rights” and is “taking steps to strengthen current safeguards” to prevent unauthorised use of IP and likeness, though it declined to detail its plans. The first version of Seedance launched in June 2025.

The dispute follows a pattern: Disney and NBCUniversal sued AI image generator Midjourney last year over “endless unauthorised copies.” But the relationship between Hollywood and AI firms is complicated — Disney also invested $1 billion in OpenAI last year and licensed content for its Sora video tool.

Looking forward

The Seedance row raises questions that UK creative businesses and policymakers are already grappling with: how to establish licensing frameworks for AI training data, and whether existing copyright law can keep pace with generative AI capabilities. The UK government’s position on AI and copyright, currently under consultation, will shape how these disputes play out domestically.