AN art gallery owner who wrongly sold tickets to a Pierce Brosnan exhibition and meet-and-greet says an AI deep-fake scammer set her up.
Simone Simms posted an ad claiming her gallery in Nottinghamshire would be hosting the James Bond star’s first ever showing which resulted in a cease and desist letter from the star’s lawyers.
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The 48-year-old said she posted the ad after months of communications with someone who was posing as Brosnan – who she now claims was creating AI-generated voice messages and video.
Fans who bought £15 tickets, £150 for days when the “artist was in residence” and £500 VIP meet-and-greets are now demanding she refund the money.
She said: “The voice on the messages sounded exactly, distinctly like him. I have no intention of taking fans’ money fraudulently. We’re still trying to figure out what happened.
“I apologise if I affected anyone or caused any ordeal but I didn’t know myself. I’ve been through an ordeal. I’ve lost a lot of money.
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“This was some elaborate, elaborate scam, maybe. I fell victim to what I thought was a real page. It looked real and it looked legit. I did my best to check.”
She claims she is out of pocket to the tune of £3,000, having paid for the shipping of his supposed art work and other costs.
The real Pierce Brosnan released an official statement via his social media channels debunking the story, saying: “I will not be exhibiting my artwork at the SMS Art Gallery in Nottingham in December 2023.
“Reports that the SMS Art Gallery has been engaged to host an exhibition are false.
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“I would never charge of a meet-and-greet.
“My attorney has contacted the gallery and sent a cease and desist letter.
“I look forward to having an exhibition in the UK in the future and, when the time comes, you will hear from me.”
The Navan star, 70, trained as an illustrator at Central Saint Martins art school in London in the late 1960s before training to be an actor at the Drama Centre.
The Irish actor has recently showed off his art work with a show in Los Angeles.
Brosnan has also announced he is to star alongside Samuel L Jackson in Richard Gray’s latest western Unholy Trinity.
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