When Tom Cruise's appearance at Dodgers-Giants NLDS game sparked 'deep fake' concerns from fans

Tom Cruise has received three Golden Globe Awards and is well known for his role in the "Mission Impossible" film series. As such, Cruise's every move is often subjected to media attention. Even when the 61-year-old is doing something as innocuous as appearing at an MLB game, conspiracy theories are never far away.

In October 2021, Tom Cruise was in San Francisco to attend a playoff game. What ensued next was surprising.

Cruise was at the second game of the 2021 NL Divisional Series between the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers. Although the video showed Cruise relaxing with his son, Connor, many internet users were skeptical that it was him.

Owing to Cruise's prevalence of deep fake videos, many observers seemed to think that this footage was doctored. DeepTomCruise is a TikTok account with millions of followers that posts regular "deep fake" videos of the celebrated actor.

Beneath the post, many fans reflected on the various deep fake Cruise videos they had watched on TikTok and other platforms. Some went as far as to suggest that "this was the first time" they had ever seen the actual actor. It is unclear whether or not Tom Cruise has seen the falsified videos of himself, or if he knows what a deep fake is at all.

The suggestions from fans ranged from humorous to outlandish:

Here are some examples of Tom Cruise deep fakes:

A deep fake is an artificially generated image or video of an existing person. Through advanced graphic engineering, these videos can simulate a person with a frightening degree of accuracy. Deep fakes have been used to impersonate actors, celebrities, and even government officials.

Although fans seemed to take delight in theorizing that it was not Cruise at the San Francisco Giants game, all indications suggest that it was. Either way, that did not stop some fans from mentioning their doubts.

Tom Cruise's deep fake controversy suggests a Brave New World for sports stars and celebrities

The deep fake technology is indeed a harrowing one. A few short years ago, the idea that somebody else could essentially copy a person to a convincing degree would have been laughable.

Now in the age of record-setting contracts like the one we saw with Shohei Ohtani, athletes and public figures need to be more careful than ever that their likeness is not being appropriated or used against them.