It was the dream signing for the owner of an unidentified Nottingham gallery - an exhibition including the work of Hollywood actor-turned-artist Pierce Brosnan, who would also take care of satisfy fans.
But the gallery's owner has actually revealed how her income and reputation were 'destroyed' after the Pierce Brosnan with whom she invested months working out the exhibition of a lifetime ended up not to be the Bond star however a 'deepfake'.
Simone Simms has actually promoted the first time about how she fell for the elaborate expert system (AI) rip-off which led to her losing her ₤ 30,000 Long Eaton gallery.
Ms Simms told The Mail on Sunday she was 'villainised' after offering ₤ 20,000 worth of tickets to art enthusiasts with the guarantee of meeting 71-year-old Brosnan, just to discover she had actually been duped.
Scammers used AI to generate a persuading similarity of Mr Brosnan video-calling her from his ₤ 80million home in Hawaii.
Ms Simms remembered 'how real' he appeared on Zoom and how she 'screeched with enjoyment that he remained in my living room talking to me' before taking the bait and sending out the scammers ₤ 3,000 for 'shipping charges' for the art.
Her headache began when she contacted what she thought to be Mr Brosnan's legitimate Facebook page at the start of 2023 and asked if he would display his paintings at her place.
She then says she was called by what she believed was the star and around 200 messages were exchanged between them on the Telegram messaging app, including a variety of voice notes talking about the exhibition.
The AI deepfake of 007 star Pierce Brosnan that fooled art gallery owner Simone Simms
Mrs Simms (envisioned, left) came down with a scam that resulted in her losing her ₤ 30,000 art gallery
More than 20,000 tickets were sold with the promise of conference 71-year-old Brosnan, who scammers had deepfaked to resemble he was calling Mrs Simms from his ₤ 80million home in Hawaii
A Pierce Brosnan painting. Mrs Simms exchanged 200 messages via Telegram with who she believed was the Bond actor
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In one audio message, listened to by The Mail on Sunday, a voice with Mr Brosnan's unique Irish accent talks about the forthcoming exhibit.
'Simone, it's Pierce Brosnan here, how's it going? Just wanted to apologise for not being able to set up a meeting,' the voice says.
'I have actually been overloaded recently. Please let your team understand that I genuinely value the invite to the art exhibit.
'I have high expectations it will be a big success.'
In a subsequent video call, Mr Brosnan's image appeared on the screen but the sound was off. Messages from the person on the other side of the phone claimed there was a technological concern.
Two of Ms Simms's good friends were also in the video conference, one of 2 Ms Simms thought she had actually had with Brosnan, and were both tricked, insisting she was not an 'idiot'.
Among them, artist Neil Adcock, said: 'It appeared like his real face. He said his child had actually set it up for him. He said the sound problem was on our end. It continued for a while.'
Pierce Brosnan at the Art Miami VIP opening in Miami Florida
After the fake occasion was reserved, Mr Brosnan put out a statement damning the gallery, insisting he 'would never ever charge for a fulfill and welcome'
The genuine Pierce's art work. Mrs Simms marketed ₤ 500 'fulfill and welcome' tickets with the deepfake Mr Brosnan
Another painting the genuine Mr Brosnan. Mrs Simms states she wants the actor photorum.eclat-mauve.fr would acknowledge her as a victim rather than a villain
Others have reported being called by a phony Facebook account, claiming to be Mr Brosnan. Pictured: One of the real Mr Brosnan's paintings
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Meanwhile, after Ms Simms scheduled and marketed her program, the genuine Mr Brosnan saw an advertisement for the exhibit featuring his art online and issued a statement damning the gallery, insisting he 'would never ever charge for a fulfill and greet'.
His attorneys sent her an immediate cease-and-desist letter in November 2023, morphomics.science 3 days after she advertised the ₤ 500 VIP meet-and-greet tickets.
A Ms Simms understood her error and tearfully recalled: 'It was the worst time of my life and it tainted my reputation.
'Pierce hurt me by providing the declaration. He needs to have done more research before he did since he would realise I was just a fan connecting however he villainised me which's where it began to fail.
'I wish he would acknowledge me as a victim and not as a villain. He needs to inform the public about what genuinely took place and set the tone.
'I don't hate him, since he is a victim too. People abused his image. If I understood it wasn't him, I would never have set up the exhibit or offered the tickets.'
A photo by Piers Brosnan illustrating a green area on the coast
Ms Simms reimbursed the ₤ 20,000 in tickets however was forced to shut her gallery in August 2024 after the incident left her credibility in tatters. Pictured: A painting by Pierce Brosnan
One of the genuine Pierce Brosnan's paintings illustrating a woman resting
As soon as she understood she had actually been deceived, Ms Simms reimbursed the ₤ 20,000 in tickets however was forced to shut her gallery in August 2024 after the saga left her track record in tatters, oke.zone with many still thinking she had tried to fraud them.
Others have actually reported being contacted by a phony Facebook account, claiming to be Mr Brosnan, asking which of his films is their favourite before asking for money.
It comes as last month The Mail exposed how a separated lady was deceived into handing over ₤ 700,000 to a fraudster presenting as Brad Pitt and asked for cash to money his immediate kidney cancer treatment.
Mr Brosnan has been approached for comment.
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How aI Deepfake of 007 Star Left Art Gallery Owner's World in Tatters
yettalittlejoh edited this page 2025-02-27 04:52:41 +01:00