Michael Caine and Matthew McConaughey sign deal to produce AI replicas of their voices with ElevenLabs |
Oscar-winning actors Michael Caine and Matthew McConaughey are the latest Hollywood figures to partner with AI audio company ElevenLabs, joining the growing list of celebrities exploring synthetic voice technology for creative and commercial use.
Michael Caine joins ElevenLabs’ Iconic Voice Marketplace
British actor Michael Caine, 92, has signed an agreement with ElevenLabs that will allow his AI-generated voice to feature on the company’s newly launched Iconic Voice Marketplace. The platform lets verified brands, production companies, and creative teams request approval to license celebrity voices for projects, campaigns, and narrated content such as books and articles. In the announcement, Caine said, “For years, I’ve lent my voice to stories that moved people – tales of courage, of wit, of the human spirit. Now, I’m helping others find theirs. With ElevenLabs, we can preserve and share voices – not just mine, but anyone’s.” He added that the company is “using innovation not to replace humanity, but to celebrate it,” stressing that “it’s not about replacing voices; it’s about amplifying them.” A promotional sizzle reel released by ElevenLabs featured Caine’s AI voice monologue introducing the concept:“My name is Michael Caine. You know, I’ve played many roles in my life, both on and off the screen, but now I’ve got a question for you, what makes a voice iconic? Is it the tone, the accent, the balance. Well, the answer is, quite simply, the message. And now, through the power of artificial intelligence, we’ve turned sound into something more, connection, without limitation, because voices give us strength, power, protest, prayer and joy. But each new frontier, each new advancement in technology is met with caution and rightly so. But every single time, the human drive, passion, artistry and creativity prevails, because technology is just the medium. This is humanity amplified. I am thrilled to announce that my voice and I are joining 11 Labs – try for yourself today.” Caine’s inclusion places him alongside other legendary voices already available on the marketplace, including John Wayne, Judy Garland, Liza Minnelli, Laurence Olivier, Jean Harlow, Lana Turner, Maya Angelou, Alan Turing, and Babe Ruth. The full roster also includes Art Garfunkel, Shoeless Joe Jackson, Bettie Page, Burt Reynolds, Richard Feynman, Amelia Earhart, Mark Twain, Ty Cobb, Jack Dempsey, Rocky Marciano, Al Joyner, Johnny Weissmuller, Jim Thorpe, Thomas Edison, Mickey Rooney, Montgomery Clift, J. Robert Oppenheimer, and Rock Hudson.
McConaughey extends collaboration with ElevenLabs
Matthew McConaughey, who began working with ElevenLabs in 2022 and has since become an investor, has also expanded his collaboration with the company. The actor will use ElevenLabs’ multilingual AI technology to produce a Spanish-language audio version of his newsletter, “Lyrics of Livin’”, narrated in his own digitally replicated voice. The project aims to make his work accessible to a broader audience while maintaining his distinctive tone and cadence. McConaughey’s voice will not appear on the public Iconic Voice Marketplace. Instead, its use is restricted to his own creative projects. The Dallas Buyers Club actor said he was “impressed” by ElevenLabs and wanted the partnership to help him “reach and connect with even more people.” This marks one of several recent moves by high-profile actors to explore the creative potential of synthetic voices. Similar collaborations have emerged across the industry, with Meta partnering with Judi Dench, John Cena, and Kristen Bell to develop AI-generated voice content, while actors and investors such as Ashton Kutcher and Leonardo DiCaprio have also backed AI technology firms.
The marketplace and its purpose
ElevenLabs’ Iconic Voice Marketplace operates as a two-sided licensing platform, connecting brands and creative partners with celebrity talent or their rights holders. Once approval is granted, ElevenLabs’ technology enables the parties to formalise the collaboration or usage deal. The company says the marketplace was developed to “solve a key ethical challenge in AI-driven media creation”, by ensuring that the sourcing and licensing of recognisable voices is done transparently and with consent. According to ElevenLabs, the system gives artists and estates direct oversight of how their digital likenesses are used, aiming to balance innovation with control.
ElevenLabs’ growing role in AI audio
Founded in New York and recently valued at about $6.6 billion, ElevenLabs has quickly become a major name in the field of AI-generated audio. The company specialises in realistic voice synthesis and multilingual dubbing, positioning itself at the centre of discussions around the future of sound, storytelling, and media localisation. By enabling artists to license their own voices rather than having them reproduced without consent, ElevenLabs is framing its approach as a model for ethical AI in entertainment. The company says its goal is to make global content distribution more efficient while preserving the artistic identity of performers.
