Matthew McConaughey Fighting Against AI Misuse By Trademarking Himself

You see it all over social media: People are using artificial intelligence to create content using the likeness of individuals of all kinds, including famous actors. 

Now, Matthew McConaughey, the star of many blockbuster films such as "Interstellar," "The Wolf of Wall Street," and "Dallas Buyers Club," is fighting against it by trademarking himself. 

More About the Trademark Filings

According to The Wall Street Journal, McConaughey has had eight trademark applications approved by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office over the last few months. What are the trademarks of exactly? They include the actor staring, smiling, and talking. 

Matthew McConaughey is taking a novel legal approach to combat unauthorized artificial-intelligence fakes: trademarking himself. 🔗 https://t.co/aT9KZHZhzb pic.twitter.com/7uFdJdR6vz

— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) January 16, 2026

The point, as mentioned, is to stop AI from using his likeness and voice.

Here's what the trademarks include: 

• 7-second clip of McConaughey standing on a porch. 
• 3-second clip of himself in front of a Christmas tree.
• Audio of him saying "Alright, alright, alright," from his 1993 film "Dazed and Confused." 

“My team and I want to know that when my voice or likeness is ever used, it’s because I approved and signed off on it,” the actor said in an email, per the Journal. “We want to create a clear perimeter around ownership with consent and attribution the norm in an AI world.”

McConaughey's lawyers aren't aware that AI is using his likeness, but they hope the trademarks will have an impact. 

“In a world where we’re watching everybody scramble to figure out what to do about AI misuse, we have a tool now to stop someone in their tracks or take them to federal court,” said Jonathan Pollack, one of McConaughey’s attorneys.

The Rise of Likeness Used By AI

Using a famous person's likeness with AI has become common, especially with stars like Taylor Swift. Right now, there are laws against people using their image or likeness to sell products, but this trademark is going one step further by hoping the threat of a lawsuit stops the misuse, even if there's no attempt to make money. 

That said, the lawyers know that, should a case ever be brought, the outcome would be up in the air. 

“I don’t know what a court will say in the end. But we have to at least test this,” said McConaughey's lawyer, Kevin Yorn.

McConaughey has partnered with ElevenLabs, an AI voice company, to create a Spanish iteration of his "Lyrics of Livin'" newsletter. McConaughey is also an investor in that company. 

The Journal also included a comment from Mark McKenna, a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles. He said trademarks protect against commercial use, but videos on social media can be monetized and generate revenue, so it's a bit of a gray area. 

“In some of the things people are most worried about with new technology, we don’t have crystal clear rules about whether they’re considered commercial,” he said.