Veteran Actor's 'Retirement Prank' Backfires Spectacularly — AI's Tears Outperform the Real Deal, Public Now Considering the Switch

“Testing the nation’s media literacy.” That arrogant motive behind releasing an AI-generated retirement video led to unexpected emotional responses. Ironically, the AI’s nuanced facial acting far surpassed the wooden performances of the actor himself. Even after the reveal, calls for “casting that AI as the lead” continue unabated, leaving the real actor facing the ultimate test of his own relevance.

It all began in the early hours of the 4th, when a video was uploaded to the official channel of veteran actor Genzo Goda (68), a man with 40 years in the industry. Titled “Time to Lower the Curtain,” the footage showed Goda (or rather, an AI version of him) expressing gratitude to his fans with a trembling voice, shedding large tears as he announced his retirement. His expression conveyed decades of struggle and the weight of his decision, captivating viewers’ hearts. “Has Goda ever shown such a human expression before?” Social media was instantly flooded with farewell comments, and the video surpassed 10 million views within just three hours of its release.

However, at an emergency press conference held that same afternoon, Goda himself triumphantly revealed the truth. “That was a fake created by cutting-edge generative AI. Those of you who couldn’t see through it clearly need more training in questioning the authenticity of information.” He proclaimed a noble purpose of sounding the alarm about society’s lack of critical thinking, surveying the press room with a smug expression. In Goda’s calculations, this was the moment when the media and public would feel ashamed of their ignorance and praise his enlightening stance.

Instead, what dominated the room was a cold silence mixed with disappointment and confusion. One entertainment reporter raised their hand and pointed out a cruel truth: “Mr. Goda, to be honest, the acting in that video was better than any of your past work.” This comment sparked a wildly ironic debate online: “The AI’s performance is more moving than his wooden delivery,” “Let him retire already and have that avatar star in the next historical drama.” The color rapidly drained from Goda’s face—color that his AI counterpart had possessed in abundance.

According to expert analysis, the AI Goda in the video perfectly simulated every element that makes humans perceive “sadness”—from micro-tremors between the eyebrows to pupil dilation and the physics of tears rolling down cheeks. Meanwhile, the real Goda has long been described as “dignified,” but less charitably, his facial muscles might as well be “set in plaster.” Ironically, the “algorithm of sorrow” that the AI calculated and output has overwhelmingly surpassed the real actor’s decades of experience in terms of emotional expressiveness.

Currently, Goda’s talent agency is reportedly being flooded with casting offers—for “AI Goda.” One film producer commented, “Lower fees, no scandals, and most importantly, better acting. Having the real Mr. Goda participate as a motion capture actor for the AI seems like a reasonable compromise.” Having set out to test media literacy, Goda now finds his value as an actor being questioned. His true retirement may not be far off.

Stakeholder Comments

• Genzo Goda (the real one): “I-I’m still alive! That was just data! It can’t replicate my soul!”
• Agency President: “You might call it a blessing in disguise… We’re currently considering putting Goda himself on leave and switching all activities to the AI.”
• Film Critic: “The AI has proven that what we called Goda’s ‘distinctive flavor’ in acting was actually just a euphemism for ‘being bad at it.’”
• AI Development Engineer: “We trained it on Mr. Goda’s past data, then deliberately boosted the ’emotional expression parameter’ by 200%. We never expected it to surpass the original.”
• Long-time Fan: “Seeing those tears, I thought Mr. Goda was a skilled actor for the first time. Finding out it was fake was a double shock, but the emotion was real.”
• Screenwriter: “The real guy doesn’t memorize his lines and improvises changes, but the AI delivers every word perfectly. It’s like a dream.”
• Lighting Technician: “The real guy’s skin is a nightmare to control for shine, but with AI, no post-processing needed. We wrap early.”
• Casting Director: “An actor with zero scandal liability risk. This is exactly the talent the industry has been waiting for.”
• Media Literacy Expert: “What an ironic teaching material. It highlights the fact that people prefer comfortable fiction (acting) over truth.”
• The Generated AI Goda: “(In a static-filled voice) I… want… to be… loved… more… than… the real… one…”

International Expressions

Haiku

• Fake tears fall / wetter than the real ones / spring dusk
• Wooden master / surpassed by AI / acting reborn
• Retirement scam / becomes a massive hit / cherry blossoms fly
• Fiction alone / appears most truthful / through the screen
• In mere data / the weight of tears shed / contemplated
• Like a student / devouring the master / generated art
• Radish actors / taste better cooked / but raw, no chance
• Applause rains down / upon the false body / standing there
• Spring melancholy / no blade needed / to kill an actor
• The final curtain / cannot be drawn / by one’s own foolish hand

Kanji / Chinese Characters

四日大物俳優剛田 引退動画公開偽物 感涙演技絶賛嵐 本人告白「私罠」 世間冷淡「絵巧者」 実物大根AI名優 主客転倒役者廃業 虚像勝利皮肉現実

Emoji

🎭🤖😢📈🎬🙅‍♂️🤥😲📉👋💿🆕🌟

Onomatopoeia

Jiwawa (tears welling up), poro-poro (tears dropping). Shiin… (silence in the press room). Gaan! (the actor’s shock). Zawa-zawa, kusu-kusu (reporters’ reactions). Pi-pi-pi, gaaa (AI computation sounds). Dokkan-dokkan (SNS explosion).

SNS

• #GodaRetirementScam
• The AI acts better than the real guy lmao
• Shouldn’t HE be the one retiring?
• Give me back those tears lol but I was moved so I’ll forgive it
• #AIGodaForLead
• Before talking about media literacy, work on your acting literacy
• Got fooled but I can stan this AI
• Modern Pinocchio replacing humans
• Mr. Goda, tough luck. You just can’t beat technological progress
• This is the nail in the coffin for the “actors are unnecessary” argument