‘FOR THE LOVE OF GOD’

Disney Star Under Fire for ‘Dystopian’ Dead Relative App

“A former Disney Channel star creating the most evil thing I’ve ever seen in my life wasn’t really what I was expecting,” wrote one X user.

Former Disney Channel star Calum Worthy’s latest non-acting endeavor isn’t being received well online, as social users call his AI app, which allows customers to speak to deceased relatives, “disgusting.”

Worthy posted an ad for his app 2wai, and it was immediately torn apart by horrified onlookers. Wrote one X user, “a former Disney Channel star creating the most evil thing I’ve ever seen in my life wasn’t really what I was expecting.”

Another elaborated, “Demonic, dishonest, and dehumanizing. If I die and you put words in my mouth I will curse you for all eternity. My value dies with me. I’m not a f---ing avatar.”

Worthy, who starred as Dez Wade on the Austin & Ally from 2011 to 2016, wrote to X that he sees 2wai as a way to “build a living archive of humanity, one story at a time.”

The 2wai ad shows a grieving and pregnant adult daughter talking with the AI-generated avatar of her deceased mother. Her AI-mom is able to comfort her pregnancy worries and advise her about how to soothe her infant son when he arrives. Later, the son, now an adult, is able to tell his AI-grandmother that he’s becoming a father himself. “You would have loved this moment,” he tells the avatar, who responds, “You can call anytime.”

The ad then declares, “With 2wai, three minutes can last forever.”

Users compared the app to several episodes of the dystopian tech series Black Mirror, which often depicts the potential horrors of embracing technology over human connection—or in this case, grief.

The series’ most recent season touched on the subject of tech’s ominous role in putting off loss in its premiere episode starring Rashida Jones and Chris O’Dowd as a financially-strapped couple paying a subscription service to keep Jones from dying of terminal illness.

“Oh goody, another way for people to completely lose touch with reality and avoid the normal process of grief,” wrote another peeved commenter, reacting to Worthy’s post. More posts insist that Black Mirror “warned” about the dangers an app like Worthy’s poses.

Some roasted the ex-Disney star directly as others egging them on, “You getting shredded in the comments is giving me hope for humanity.”

One user compared posted a meme comparing Worthy’s post-Disney life to that of former Good Luck Charlie star Bridgit Mendler, who became a space startup CEO—suggesting Worthy took the villainous path by comparison.

More tried to persuade Worthy from going forward with the project, writing, “if this releases it’ll cause thousands of cases like psychosis and/or suicides. STOP for the LOVE OF GOD.”

Eboni Boykin-PattersonEntertainment Reporter

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