A groundbreaking partnership between licensing startup Lumiere Ventures and AI dubbing company ElevenLabs is set to make waves in the international cinema market. The collaboration will debut with the highly anticipated action film Armor, starring Sylvester Stallone, which is slated to premiere on Amazon France in March 2025.
For nearly five decades, Alain Dorval was the iconic French voice of Sylvester Stallone in dubbed versions of his films. Dorval, a revered figure in French cinema, passed away in 2024, leaving behind a significant legacy in the world of voice dubbing. In an innovative move, ElevenLabs will use its advanced AI technology to recreate Dorval’s distinctive voice for Armor, ensuring his presence lives on in Stallone’s French-language films.
The family of Alain Dorval has fully supported this project. In a statement released to the press, Dorval’s daughter, Aurore Bergé, expressed the family’s commitment to preserving her father’s legacy. “We wanted to do something that honors my father’s craft and legacy,” she said. “There is a main difference between artificially creating a new voice – and my dad was strongly opposed to that – and bringing back to life an actor whose voice is deeply anchored in our collective imagination.”
“AI doesn’t replace the magic of human creativity—it opens new doors for it,” said Mati Staniszewski, CEO of ElevenLabs. “Recreating Alain Dorval’s voice is a chance to show how technology can honor tradition while creating new possibilities in film production.”
This collaboration represents a significant step forward in the use of AI technology in the entertainment industry, blending tradition with innovation. By using ElevenLabs’ technology, Lumiere Ventures and its partners are not only preserving Dorval’s iconic voice but also honoring his invaluable contribution to French cinema. This venture marks a major milestone in the global push for AI-driven dubbing, promising to offer an authentic experience for international audiences.
