Taika Waititi joins in on the current AI-generated image trend by reacting to a NSFW Our Flag Means Death-inspired Blackbeard Dall-E meme. The New Zealand filmmaker is best known for directing two entries in the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Thor series, 2017's Ragnarok and this summer's upcoming Thor: Love and Thunder. Other than his work behind the camera, Waititi also voices and provides a motion-capture performance for the MCU character Korg, the soft-spoken Kronan rock warrior who befriends Thor in a Sakaarian cell.
Outside the MCU, Waititi is also involved in a variety of different television shows as a writer, director, actor, and executive producer, including What We Do in the Shadows, The Mandalorian, and Reservation Dogs. His most recent small screen project is the HBO Max series Our Flag Means Death, in which he plays the legendary pirate captain Edward Teach, also known as Blackbeard. The pirate romantic-comedy has received overwhelmingly positive reviews for its substantial LGBTQ+ representation and queer relationships, including the central romance between Blackbeard and Rhys Darby's Captain Stede Bonnet.
Now, Waititi is joining in on the Dall-E trend by reacting to a AI-generated image inspired by Our Flag Means Death. Using the program Dall-E Mini, a fan entered the prompt "blackbeard taika waititi lingerie" in order to generate some rather unsettling images of Waititi's Blackbeard in lingerie with a distorted face. Waititi reacted to the photo collection on Twitter, saying "F*ck yeah" and "Eggplant city." Check out the Dall-E meme and Waititi's reaction in the Twitter thread below:
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The AI image tool known as Dall-E Mini has recently been capturing Twitter's attention as users input almost any phrase imaginable. The software then uses artificial intelligence to spit out a series of images, which are often weird, funny, and occasionally disturbing. Though the exact use of the text-to-image software is unclear, many have been using it to produce AI-generated memes which often seem surreal and otherworldly. This is far from the first time art and AI have intersected in this way, as the program Interkit was used to write a full script for Star Wars: Episode X.
Waititi's reaction is not in the least bit surprising given the director's zany sense of humor, which he has famously showcased on Marvel's Thor series and the 2019 film Jojo Rabbit, the latter earning him an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. The Our Flag Means Death fandom hasn't shied away from exploring all kinds of scenarios for its characters through various mediums, and to his credit, Waititi has embraced the enthusiasm with open arms. It makes sense that he would find some amusement in the botched Dall-E search, even when others might cringe away. With Our Flag Means Death returning for season 2, expect to see Waititi indulge in more antics like these going forward.
Source: Taika Waititi/Twitter