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“As If Nothing Happened”: I Used Artificial Intelligence To See How Some Celebrities Would Look Today If They Were Alive (10 Pics)
I am Alper Yesiltas, a lawyer and photographer living in Istanbul, Turkey. I've been imagining scenes and capturing memories for about 19 years now. During that time, some of my photos have been edited worldwide in books, magazines, exhibitions, and websites and were awarded in several photo contests.
I would like to share with you the first collection of images of my AI-based project called "As if nothing happened". Behind this project lies the question of "how would people look photo-realistically if some great events had not happened to them". I look forward to your feedback and suggestions.
More info: Instagram | rarible.com | twitter.com
This post may include affiliate links.
Freddie Mercury
I wish he hadn't got that disease.
Especially with his voice still alive in my head
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That f*****g disease stole too many. I've had more than one student tell me that Gen X/Boomers are "homophobic" because there aren't nearly as many queer people from older generations than there are now. No, sweeties, it's because a huge percentage of our queer folk died of AIDS in the 80s and 90s. Thanks, Reagan and Conservative Christians!
If AIDS was God's punishment for sinners, then Lesbians are the Chosen People. They have lowest rate of infection.
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He was such a handsome talented man. He and Prince have been such a loss. 😢
I would sit a listen to this guys stories. He looks like that awesome Grandpa we all want but didnt deserve. RIP Legend!
Wayne Co citizen here👍 Freddie here looks a little too straight laced but it’s no less the sophisticate Freddie.😊💖
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Grandfatherly, but you know he's still a kickass rocker on the side. Maybe he's just tearing the roof off his local pub on weekends, but he'd still have a foot in the biz. Freddie's such an agonizing loss even after more than 30(!) years.
Just imagine what else he could have done musically if he was still alive....
Oh DARLING!! So sorry YOU & so many of us, as well! You’re looking EVERY BIT AS HANDSOME AS I BELIEVED I KNEW YOU WOULD! 🥲
Beautiful pic, but I think he would have looked older. He would be in his mid 70s now. I would put this pic at about 68.
Freddie looks like a distinguished gentleman always loved Freddie and he still looks good even in old age. Awesome work :)
Freddie looks like a distinguished gentleman even in old age I still love him .. awesome job :)
So good to see a healthy Freddie. The first photo and I'm already crying. Thank you Alper. ✌& ❤
Oh Freddie. If only you could still be here with your unquestionable charisma and Voice
How I wished for him to reach this age and be loved and be happy. Great loss for many 😢
These are awesome. I'd be curious to see you do similar images for celebrities that are still alive using images from decades ago as if they died at age 27, or 41 or 45. and see how they compare to how they actually look now. Like Ringo Starr, Keith Richards, Carlos Santana, Joni MItchell or David Crosby.
Talk about aging with grace! Freddy is so handsome and distinguished looking!
Oh Freddie, i grew up without really knowing Queen other than a song or 2. After watching the movie 2 years ago i was so impressed and actually sad that i never really got to know them when i was younger. Freddie is a hero, it feels like he is still here. Great picture.
How much more amazing music could we have got from him and Queen? Or is it made more amazing because of his untimely death?
He would have had the best tweets, been an incredible judge on RPDR, and made even more incredible music. I hate that he was stolen from the world way too soon.
I can't imagine Freddie would've had time for doing Tweets.
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With the development of AI technology, I've been excited for a while, thinking that "anything imaginable can be shown in reality". When I started tinkering with technology, I saw what I could do and thought about what would make me the happiest. I wanted to see some of the people I missed again in front of me and that's how this project emerged.
Heath Ledger
I wish he hadn't been affected by the exhaustion of his role.
Janis Joplin
I wish she hadn't sought the inspiration she needed elsewhere.
The hardest part of the creative process for me is making the image feel "real" to me. The moment I like the most is when I think the image in front of me looks very realistic as if it was taken by a photographer.
I am using various software programs. The time it takes for me to create one fully finished image varies, but I would say it takes a while for an image to feel "real" to me.
Michael Jackson
I wish he hadn't faced vitiligo.
I absolutely love seeing this. Michael was naturally super handsome and it would've been wonderful to see him like this
Kurt Cobain
I wish he had decided to stay.
There are 10 images so far in this project, I want to extend it but I want to do it in a selective way, so the process is a little bit slow for me. For future projects, there are various things I imagine about real life using AI technology. Like "Life in 2050" and "Alternate Museum".
Jimi Hendrix
I wish he hadn't sought the inspiration he needed elsewhere.
I see this and can picture him in retirement jammin out on a stoop teaching the younger generations how to shred.
John Lennon
I wish he hadn't been in New York that day.
Bruce Lee
I wish he hadn't taken that painkiller that day.
Rick the Dragon Steamboats twin. (80's WWE/WWF). But i still wouldnt mess with Mr Lee. Nope.
Elvis Presley
I wish he decided to live a life where he paid more attention to the health of his heart.
2pac
I wish he hadn't been involved in that event that would cause him to face the mafia.
Interesting that the OP knows who killed him, since law enforcement does not. 🤦♀️
I wish Phil Hartman was here. I wish he hadn't been as kind as he was to someone so undeserving. You are extremely talented.
Losing Phil was a shock to so many. I can't begin to imagine the projects he might've been involved with or the people he would've worked with if things had been different.
Load More Replies... Thinking of what the world would be like if we still had Karen Carpenter, Otis Redding, Buddy & Ritchie & JP, Ian Curtis, Amy Winehouse, Jim Morrison, and Selena, too. And 2016 was a horror show anyway, and there are too many losses, but oh, if we still had Bowie, Prince, and Carrie Fisher, the world might be slightly better.
let me guess... Mickael Jackson - John Lennon (Christopher Lee vibes :) ) - Freedy Mercury - Madonna - 2 Pac ? - Bruce Lee - Janis Joplin - Jimi Hendricks. very good work, very realistic.
Thank you so much, all correct. Actually John Lennon is my favourite so far, I loved that you found it similar to Christopher Lee, one of my favourite actors.
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not in the first version of the article, it was funnier :)
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I know OP only did music idols, but would love to see Princess Diana, Selena Quintanilla, Chadwick Boseman, Amy Winehouse... Heck even Bowie and Alan Rickman in their 90s
I only recognise one I'm guessing is Michael Jackson. Sorry without knowing their names I'm really bad at guessing lol x
This is interesting because from this projects reality perspective, the person with the most different appearance is him :)
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Love the JL and FM but the hubs thinks Bruce Lee looks like Jimmy Page. Great work!
I’m not big on AI, but these look really good! The aging looks really natural and they all still resemble themselves. I admit I don’t know who the fourth person is, though she looks really familiar.
Thank you so much, she's Madonna :)
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I wish Whitney Houston had understood how special she was. Also that none of these had ever taken drugs.
This has legit been my fave bp ever. I was absolutely crushed when Heath Ledger died. All of these people really. Janis Joplin was a bit before my time, but I still recognize her loss. I'm not sure I was comfortable with Madonna in this group- a different list with stars is they were just living a small life working retail would be interesting to me with her in that one, but looking into all the eyes of those we lost then seeing Madonna, It jolted me like I'd missed a big headline or something. 🥺 But, all in all, well done
I thought all of these were spot on, especially Michael if he hadn't altered his appearance. Freddy Mercury was so real and Janice was too. You did a wonderful job!
The musicians hit me the hardest, knowing how much we lost from not being able to enjoy anything new of their amazing natural gifts. And yours to capture them the way you did, thank you!
Absolutely fascinating and well done! Loved Freddie, Lennon, and Janis the most. I can't see the Madonna one on the list (although people do mention it), so I'd like to share it here (via Instagram) as I found it THE most interesting. It really grabbed me. She hasn't died, but she hasn't aged gracefully. What would she look like without all of the surgeries? Definite Bonnie Raitt vibe! Madonna-Al...6628f2.png 
I loved this article but the no revelation of the dead reason made me Google it (Bruce Lee and jimi Hendrix and now i feel like a morbid creepy. 😩
most of those great artists lived too much intensively and burned their rocket fuel. But they travelled the distance that was worth the ride. Sorry to say but they were saved from seeing the present decadence of music
"...if some great event hadn't happened to them?" ?!...You mean if they hadn't passed away?! Why not just say it?
The overall project speculated what they'd look like (for example, Elvis) if they'd taken better care of themselves and not gone down the fried peanut butter sandwiches and diet pills route in life. At least, that's how it came across to me. Also why I thought the Madonna one was so interesting. She hasn't died, but she hasn't aged gracefully. What would she look like without all of the surgeries?
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Well I was entranced by all ….a Lennon fan I certainly dug that pic…. The list could go on unfortunately… but thank you for sharing👍✌️
These are very good. My favorite is MJ. A view of what could have been....
How about Phil Lynott, Marylin Monroe, Ricky Nelson, Steve McQueen, James Dean, Bob Marley, Alexander Godunov, to name a few?
I feel like a lot of these offer either a gross oversimplification, or ignore almost entirely what went wrong in their lives. Was vitiligo a foundational source of Michael Jackson's angst? I suspect not having it wouldn't have made that kind of difference. Was "the exhaustion of (Heath Ledger's) role" what killed him? Maybe, except he had addictions and depression. I dunno, it feels like many of these intentionally do not accurately represent what went wrong.
He had Bruce but what about his son, Brandon? Or Robin Williams? Or Britney Murphy. I'd like to see those faces again
I wish Phil Hartman was here. I wish he hadn't been as kind as he was to someone so undeserving. You are extremely talented.
Losing Phil was a shock to so many. I can't begin to imagine the projects he might've been involved with or the people he would've worked with if things had been different.
Load More Replies... Thinking of what the world would be like if we still had Karen Carpenter, Otis Redding, Buddy & Ritchie & JP, Ian Curtis, Amy Winehouse, Jim Morrison, and Selena, too. And 2016 was a horror show anyway, and there are too many losses, but oh, if we still had Bowie, Prince, and Carrie Fisher, the world might be slightly better.
let me guess... Mickael Jackson - John Lennon (Christopher Lee vibes :) ) - Freedy Mercury - Madonna - 2 Pac ? - Bruce Lee - Janis Joplin - Jimi Hendricks. very good work, very realistic.
Thank you so much, all correct. Actually John Lennon is my favourite so far, I loved that you found it similar to Christopher Lee, one of my favourite actors.
Load More Replies... not in the first version of the article, it was funnier :)
Load More Replies... I know OP only did music idols, but would love to see Princess Diana, Selena Quintanilla, Chadwick Boseman, Amy Winehouse... Heck even Bowie and Alan Rickman in their 90s
I only recognise one I'm guessing is Michael Jackson. Sorry without knowing their names I'm really bad at guessing lol x
This is interesting because from this projects reality perspective, the person with the most different appearance is him :)
Load More Replies... Love the JL and FM but the hubs thinks Bruce Lee looks like Jimmy Page. Great work!
I’m not big on AI, but these look really good! The aging looks really natural and they all still resemble themselves. I admit I don’t know who the fourth person is, though she looks really familiar.
Thank you so much, she's Madonna :)
Load More Replies... I wish Whitney Houston had understood how special she was. Also that none of these had ever taken drugs.
This has legit been my fave bp ever. I was absolutely crushed when Heath Ledger died. All of these people really. Janis Joplin was a bit before my time, but I still recognize her loss. I'm not sure I was comfortable with Madonna in this group- a different list with stars is they were just living a small life working retail would be interesting to me with her in that one, but looking into all the eyes of those we lost then seeing Madonna, It jolted me like I'd missed a big headline or something. 🥺 But, all in all, well done
I thought all of these were spot on, especially Michael if he hadn't altered his appearance. Freddy Mercury was so real and Janice was too. You did a wonderful job!
The musicians hit me the hardest, knowing how much we lost from not being able to enjoy anything new of their amazing natural gifts. And yours to capture them the way you did, thank you!
Absolutely fascinating and well done! Loved Freddie, Lennon, and Janis the most. I can't see the Madonna one on the list (although people do mention it), so I'd like to share it here (via Instagram) as I found it THE most interesting. It really grabbed me. She hasn't died, but she hasn't aged gracefully. What would she look like without all of the surgeries? Definite Bonnie Raitt vibe! Madonna-Al...6628f2.png
I loved this article but the no revelation of the dead reason made me Google it (Bruce Lee and jimi Hendrix and now i feel like a morbid creepy. 😩
most of those great artists lived too much intensively and burned their rocket fuel. But they travelled the distance that was worth the ride. Sorry to say but they were saved from seeing the present decadence of music
"...if some great event hadn't happened to them?" ?!...You mean if they hadn't passed away?! Why not just say it?
The overall project speculated what they'd look like (for example, Elvis) if they'd taken better care of themselves and not gone down the fried peanut butter sandwiches and diet pills route in life. At least, that's how it came across to me. Also why I thought the Madonna one was so interesting. She hasn't died, but she hasn't aged gracefully. What would she look like without all of the surgeries?
Load More Replies... Well I was entranced by all ….a Lennon fan I certainly dug that pic…. The list could go on unfortunately… but thank you for sharing👍✌️
These are very good. My favorite is MJ. A view of what could have been....
How about Phil Lynott, Marylin Monroe, Ricky Nelson, Steve McQueen, James Dean, Bob Marley, Alexander Godunov, to name a few?
I feel like a lot of these offer either a gross oversimplification, or ignore almost entirely what went wrong in their lives. Was vitiligo a foundational source of Michael Jackson's angst? I suspect not having it wouldn't have made that kind of difference. Was "the exhaustion of (Heath Ledger's) role" what killed him? Maybe, except he had addictions and depression. I dunno, it feels like many of these intentionally do not accurately represent what went wrong.
He had Bruce but what about his son, Brandon? Or Robin Williams? Or Britney Murphy. I'd like to see those faces again
