Kristen Bell was ‘shocked’ to learn her face had been used in a pornographic deepfake video

Kristen Bell is opening up about falling victim to a pornographic ‘deepfake,’ which is when a person in an existing video is replaced with the likeness of another.

‘I was just shocked, because this is my face. Belongs to me!… It’s hard to think about, that I’m being exploited,’ explained the 39-year-old Veronica Mars star in a video interview with Vox published on Wednesday. 

As for how she found out about the video, Kristen admitted that husband Dax Shepard, 45, had told her after he was alerted by pal Ashton Kutcher that it was circulating the web.

‘[Dax] is friends with Ashton Kutcher. So, [Ashton] actually told him, ‘Oh, by the way, there are these things calls deepfakes and your wife is one of them.” 

Kristen was absolutely ‘shocked’ by the video’s existence and even more shocked to learn that 96% of all deepfakes are pornographic in nature.

Reporter Henry Ajder, who wrote an extensive piece on deepfakes for Deeptrace, stated that a large majority of women featured in these explicit videos had never consented to their likeness being used.

Kristen continued: ‘We’re having this gigantic conversation about consent and I don’t consent — so that’s why it’s not okay.’

Bell also said that although people may be informed of the fact that it is not actually her performing the acts in the video, it is still a violation to her bodily autonomy.

‘Even if it’s labeled as, ‘This is not actually her,’ it’s hard to think about that. I wish that the internet were a little bit more responsible and a little bit kinder,’ concluded The Good Place actress. 

Of the nearly 40 celebrity victims she attempted to contact for her Vox piece, journalist Cleo Abram revealed that Bell was the only one willing to talk openly about her experience.

As for why Kristen felt the need to come forward, she insisted that she feels it is ‘important to not ignore red flags in the world’ and to address new technologies as they emerge.

‘When new technologies start popping up, I think we’re screwed if we don’t acknowledge the detriment that it could bring to us,’ explained the actress.

‘It’s a tough issue and I had a sneaking suspicion maybe other people wouldn’t want to talk about it, and I feel a responsibility… I hope that we can continue conversations about this and see who it’s negatively affecting, and help to change that.’