At first glance, Disney’s recent moves look contradictory. The company announces a sweeping partnership with OpenAI that allows its characters to appear inside generative tools like Sora, while almost simultaneously firing off cease-and-desist letters to Google and pressing forward with aggressive litigation against Midjourney. To some observers, this looks like confusion. To anyone who has watched Disney for long enough, it looks like something else entirely. This is a company that has spent a century mastering the art of adapting control to new forms of participation.

Hollywood is in uproar over Tilly Norwood, an AI-generated “actress” that talent agents are reportedly lining up to sign. SAG-AFTRA, the actors’ union, quickly condemned the move, declaring that creativity “must remain human-centered.” But the real significance of Tilly isn’t about movies at all. She is a glimpse into the next great disruption of work: when synthetic talent—actors, consultants, analysts, even leaders—compete alongside human professionals. What’s playing out in Hollywood today is simply the first act of a drama that will transform every industry built on knowledge and creativity.