A side-by-side video of Scarlett Johansson and Elizabeth Olsen is challenging the internet to see if they can determine which actress is real and which is a deepfake.
The short clip, which was shared online by Twitter’s Head of Consumer Product Marketing, Justin Taylor, features Olsen on the left-hand side and Johansson on the right side.
In the video, the two actresses are seen talking in a video interview. Both Johansson and Olsen move alike, say the same words, use identical facial expressions, and have the same haircut.
Viewers are then asked to guess which of the two seemingly real actresses in the clip is a deepfake and which is real — leaving many Twitter users stumped.
Telltale Signs
According to The Daily Star, although both clips look realistic, sharp-eyed Twitter users were able to spot that Olsen was the real actress and Johansson was a deepfake due to some inconsistencies in the footage.
One user pointed out that the clip of Johansson shows her briefly with a “double eyebrow.” Her fringe also glitches in the footage.
She gets double eyebrows and part of the fringe glitches here and there. But of course I was actively comparing the two. If the video had been posted without context I probably wouldn’t have noticed (aside from the hair not suiting her somehow) pic.twitter.com/UmWFPcD4UR
Other telltale signs of a deepfake in the clip include the lack of shadows on Johansson’s face when she moves her hand, flaws in the lighting on her face, and peculiarities in her hair and neck muscles.
A ‘Terrifying’ Future
While Twitter users were eventually able to identify Johansson as the deepfake, many were astounded at how realistic she looked in the video.
A social media user remarks that they were only able to spot the deepfake because they were “looking” for the clues and notes that it is “terrifying what the future will bring.”
Others called deepfake technology “impressive” but “scary.” While another Twitter user similarly describes the deepfake as “scary” and comments that “this kind of technology brings a whole lot of cons than pros.”
Earlier this year, the FBI issued a warning that a rising number of scammers are using deepfake technology to impersonate job candidates during interviews for remote positions.