Why AI-Recut Neighbours Raises Questions About Consent

What is happening to Margot Robbie’s Neighbours episodes?

RoseBerry Media is repurposing footage from the Australian soap Neighbours for short, vertically framed episodes intended for phones. The episodes are planned for its Epis platform and are being prepared with an AI-assisted production tool called RedSnapper. ¹³

The first material is to focus on Donna Freedman, the character Robbie played from 2008 to 2011. Two storylines are being recut into about 150 minutes of content, according to the Guardian. ¹

That description matters: the reports describe rearranging and reformatting existing programme footage. They do not say that Robbie has filmed new scenes for this project or that her face or voice has been digitally generated. ¹³

Why are actors raising concerns about consent?

The Guardian reports that Neighbours cast members say they were not consulted about the recutting project. Stefan Dennis, another star of the soap, criticised it in comments reported by the Herald Sun, calling it “unbelievably invasive, morally and legally wrong”. ¹

The concern is about more than whether an old episode can be shown again. A performer’s recorded acting can be edited into a new viewing format and presented as fresh, short-form content. That can raise questions about whether the people whose performances appear were asked, what they agreed to, and whether their work is being used in a way they expected.

Those are questions raised by the dispute, not settled findings about the project. The reporting provided here does not include statements from Robbie, details of cast contracts, or a full account of any discussions between the companies and performers. ¹³

Does this mean Margot Robbie’s likeness was generated by AI?

The available reporting does not establish that. It says the project uses AI-assisted software to rework footage from the original programme. It does not explain precisely which editing tasks RedSnapper performs or say that the tool creates a digital double, new dialogue, or new acting by Robbie. ¹³

A likeness dispute can involve different things: using a recording of someone’s real performance, altering that recording, or generating new material that resembles them. The supplied reporting supports the first point—existing Neighbours footage is being recut—but does not provide enough technical detail to say whether the other kinds of alteration are involved. ¹

So the most accurate description is an AI-assisted recut of archived television footage. Calling it an AI-generated Margot Robbie performance would go beyond what these reports establish.

What is new about turning old episodes into microdramas?

The project takes material made for a conventional television soap and reshapes it as vertical, phone-oriented episodes. The Guardian describes two storylines being recut into short mobile instalments, with about 150 minutes of content in total. ¹

This changes how archived performances are packaged and watched. It also makes the question of consultation more visible: cast members may see their old work placed in a new product or format, while audiences may not know whether the people shown were involved in that new use.

The sources do not describe the editing process in enough detail to explain how much the footage is changed beyond its new format and presentation. Nor do they say how the finished episodes will be divided or what safeguards, if any, will apply. ¹

What is known about permissions and the project’s future?

The reports identify RoseBerry Media as the company preparing the recut and Epis as the platform intended to carry it. They do not provide the relevant contracts, explain who controls the footage, or say what permissions the companies say they have. ¹³

Dennis said he had contacted his agent and expected other people connected with the show, along with the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance and the Australian Writers’ Guild, to be involved. The reporting does not confirm what action those groups took or whether anyone can prevent release. ¹

As of October 26, 2026, the supplied sources leave the central questions unresolved: what the AI tool does in practice, what approvals were obtained, and whether the cast or their representatives will reach an agreement. Readers should distinguish the reported objections from a legal ruling; none is described in these sources. ¹