PAUL NEWMAN - NEWMAN JOINS FIGHT FOR IMAGE RIGHTS

Screen veteran PAUL NEWMAN is backing a bill to protect image and vocal rights for actors. The possible ruling could make it illegal for movie-makers to steal previous footage or speech and use it in other projects for up to 70 year's after the actor's death, unless consent has been sought. Newman, alongside fellow actors CHRISTOPHER PLUMMER and CHARLES GRODIN, fears developments in movie technology will mean he can appear in an entire film without being physically involved - and without permission. He says, "They could make a whole movie that looked like me, talked like me, acted like me, sounded like me, but wasn't me." Plummer adds, "We are suddenly being cloned into something we're not. "We are robbed of our individuality and our life's work is tarnished."