In the age of deepfakes, could virtual actors put humans out of business?

In film and video games, we've already seen what's possible with 'digital humans'. Are we on the brink of the world's first totally virtual acting star?

When you're watching a modern blockbuster such as The Avengers, it's hard to escape the feeling that what you're seeing is almost entirely computer-generated imagery, from the effects to the sets to fantastical creatures. But if there's one thing you can rely on to be 100% real, it's the actors. We might have virtual pop stars like Hatsune Miku, but there has never been a world-famous virtual film star.

Even that link with corporeal reality, though, is no longer absolute. You may have already seen examples of what's possible: Peter Cushing (or his image) appearing in Rogue One: A Star Wars Story more than 20 years after his death, or Tupac Shakur performing from beyond the grave at Coachella in 2012. We've seen the terrifying potential of deepfakes - manipulated footage that could play a dangerous role in the fake news phenomenon. Jordan Peele's remarkable fake Obama video is a key example. Could technology soon make professional actors redundant?