Voice actor plans to sue Netflix over use of his voice in AI training
03.11.2026
A German voice actor plans to file a lawsuit against the streaming giant Netflix amid the debate over controversial AI contract clauses for dubbing voices.
Matti Klemm - the German voice of US actors Jason Momoa and Mahershala Ali - is alleging a breach of his right to privacy and his copyright and data protection rights, according to a statement issued on Tuesday by the Association of German Voice Artists (VDS), of which Klemm is a member.
The case centres on data disclosed to Klemm by Netflix. This allegedly reveals that the company had previously trained AI systems using his personal voice recordings without his knowledge or consent. According to his lawyer, Klemm was not consulted, nor did he receive any payment.
Netflix told dpa that it takes the current discussions seriously and referred to an agreement the company reached last year with the Federal Association of Actors (BFFS) regarding AI, aimed at strengthening the protection of voice actors.
"Netflix's use of AI is in accordance with applicable law," the company said.
The VDS does not view this as an isolated case. "For years, many corporations have used copyright-protected works and personal data to train their AI systems without asking the people behind them," said the association's head, Anna-Sophia Lumpe.
The lawsuit is intended to clarify whether they were permitted to do so. Klemm explained that "we urgently need a precedent because this affects the entire creative industry."
Voice actors protested earlier this year against new contract clauses in streaming productions, including those from Netflix. According to the VDS, these clauses allow pre-recorded voices to be used for training AI systems. Many artists have refused to sign the contracts, resulting in some dubbing productions grinding to a halt.
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