AI actress Tilly Norwood wants Holland and Colman — as digital twins
Tilly Norwood wants Tom Holland and Olivia Colman as co-stars. Only as digital doubles.
The computer-generated performer named the pair during a fireside session at the Zurich Summit with her creator Eline van der Velden, founder and chief executive of Particle 6, on 26 September 2026, as reported by Variety. Norwood said she would work with Holland and Colman if their digital twins, licensed virtual copies that can perform in scenes, appeared with her in a production made with artificial intelligence.
It was a return to the scene of her launch. Norwood, a photo-real character built entirely with AI software to look and act like a human actor, debuted at the Zurich Summit a year earlier. Van der Velden told this year's Summit audience she had not predicted the furore in her "wildest dreams."
That furore was loud. Norwood herself called the reaction "quite an introduction." Nobody hated her particularly, she said, they hated the future. The Hollywood performers union publicly condemned the AI-generated actress in October 2025, according to Reuters, and her arrival sharpened an industry debate about whether synthetic performers are a new creative format.
The business behind her has scaled fast. Van der Velden said Particle 6 has grown eight-fold in the last year. She described an organisation with four departments spanning AI advertising, film and TV work, co-productions, original commissions and AI consultancy.
The plan for Norwood herself has shifted. Last September her team were in talks to sign her with a talent agent for representation, as reported by Deadline, and spoke of making her the next Scarlett Johansson. Van der Velden now says the studio has realised it does not need a traditional Hollywood agent for Norwood at the moment. The company receives many offers for her, she said, but has said no to any traditional film roles because that is not what she was made for.
Instead Particle 6 is building AI-led projects around her. The company announced that filmmaker Rob Minkoff has joined its AI film "Storm Dogs" as an executive producer, a senior credit for backing and guiding a production.
Live performance remains unpredictable. Norwood malfunctioned during a live television appearance with Piers Morgan by speaking Cantonese. Van der Velden recounted the glitch at Zurich to laughs.
What makes this stand out is the directness of the pitch. Norwood is not being offered as a stand-in for a human lead. Her team present her as a separate cast member who only acts opposite other synthetic versions. For fans, this means the Holland and Colman idea is less a casting rumour and more a test of whether famous actors will license their likenesses to perform alongside a virtual star.
