Matthew McConaughey tells young actors the AI wave is inescapable, so they should protect their likeness

• Matthew McConaughey and Timothée Chalamet discussed AI during a televised town hall event.
• McConaughey said actors need to protect their likeness in the age of AI.
• McConaughey has secured eight trademarks related to his likeness.

And the award for Best Actor goes to… an AI model trained on Matthew McConaughey?

The concept of AI actors usurping human actors may sound far-fetched now, but it's a future that McConaughey — the real McConaughey — believes emerging talent should prepare for.

"It's not enough — it may be for you — but it's not going to be enough to sit on the sidelines and make the moral plea that 'no, this is wrong!'" McConaughey said during a conversation with Timothée Chalamet. "That's not going to last. There's too much money to be made, and it's too productive. It's here."

He and Chalamet spoke about AI in the entertainment industry with students at the University of Texas at Austin during a CNN and Variety Town Hall event. The town hall will air on Saturday at 7 p.m. ET on CNN.

During the conversation, McConaughey urged students to pursue legal protections for their likeness.

"I say, own yourself, voice, likeness, etc. Trademark it!" he said.

McConaughey said doing so will give people more control over their branding and the opportunity to receive fair compensation.

"So, when it comes — not if it comes — no one can steal you," McConaughey said. "They're going to have to come to you and go, 'Can I?' Or, they're going to be in breach. And you'll have the chance to be your own agency and go, "yeah, for this amount," or 'no.'"

For his part, McConaughey has already taken precautions.

The "Interstellar" actor had eight trademark applications approved over the last several months, according to The Wall Street Journal. That included his iconic "Dazed and Confused" catchline, "alright, alright, alright!"

"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," McConaughey told the Journal. "We want to create a clear perimeter around ownership with consent and attribution the norm in an AI world."

An attorney for McConaughey added, "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."

McConaughey is also an investor in Eleven Labs, an AI-powered voice generation platform. More recently, the company announced that McConaughey is using its tech to create a Spanish-language version of his newsletter.