French Lara Croft voice actor Françoise Cadol has filed a lawsuit against Aspyr Media, accusing the studio of using an AI-generated clone of her voice in the Tomb Raider 4-6 Remastered release without her consent.
The ongoing debate surrounding the use of artificial intelligence in video game voice acting has reached a new level. Actress Françoise Cadol, best known as the French voice of Lara Croft, is suing Tomb Raider developer Aspyr Media for allegedly using AI to clone her voice in the recently released Tomb Raider 4-6 Remastered.
The Troubled History Between SAG-AFTRA And AI
Voice actors have been raising concerns about AI for years. In 2024, SAG-AFTRA, a union representing voice actors, came under fire after striking a controversial deal with Replica Studios, an AI voice generation company. The agreement was intended to establish "ethical" guidelines for AI use in games, but many performers felt betrayed because they claimed they had never been consulted.
Actors such as Andrew Russell (World of Warcraft, Genshin Impact) publicly denounced the deal, calling it "garbage." There was loud and widespread backlash – many feared that AI cloning could erase years of skill, training, and individuality in voice work.
After months of protest and an industry-wide strike, SAG-AFTRA reached a new agreement with major game publishers in 2025. The updated contract included strict consent requirements: studios must inform actors if their voice or likeness is digitally replicated, and they cannot use AI versions without explicit permission. This was taken as a victory, as it gave performers long-awaited protection against being silently replaced.
The Lara Croft AI Controversy
Now, less than half a year later, Cadol revealed to Le Parisien that Aspyr's Tomb Raider Remastered update replaced her original recordings with an AI-generated imitation. Since 1996, Cadol has voiced Lara Croft in France, helping to establish the character as a pop culture icon there. Hearing an AI copy of her performance was "a shock," she said. On August 14, 2025, Aspyr released its remastered compilation of Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation, Tomb Raider Chronicles, and Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness. According to Cadol, the update replaced her work with an AI voice clone. She filed a formal complaint demanding accountability from the Texas-based publisher.
Cadol’s lawsuit highlights the fears that actors voiced during the SAG-AFTRA debates: AI can and will replace them, even in legacy projects. Although the 2025 agreement set new industry standards in the U.S., it is unclear how these rules apply internationally or to past performances.