H Jenkins on May 8, 2026
WWE has embraced using AI, but that’s not the best way to go for some fans. During this week’s SmackDown, they went a bit over the line.
The May 8 episode of WWE SmackDown went down at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. The Gingerbread Man passed away, and this week’s SmackDown ended with a funeral for the mascot who was invented to troll Sami Zayn.
The Gingerbread Man’s funeral took center stage throughout this week’s SmackDown. That included a wake for the Gingerbread Man that included a few posters that were printed of obvious AI artwork. The company wasn’t finished with its ChatGPT playtime.
During the final segment of SmackDown this week, Trick Williams played a video during the Gingerbread Man’s funeral. That included a ton of AI artwork, and fans didn’t like that at all.
Fans were not happy about the AI-filled Gingerbread Man tribute video. One fan posted to say, “Done with @wwe. Cutting too many corners with this AI crap. Hire a real graphics artist!”
Another fan posted to say, “Are you ready for an AI slop video package about a gingerbread man on your wrestling show?” Others were a lot more vocal, like one fan who said, “WWE Bro what is this AI slop? Giving the Gingerbread Man a full Hollywood farewell montage? Baking, Paris picnics, water skiing, DJing… then “In Loving Memory – A Life Well-Done” Bro got bodied in 5 seconds but gets an Oscar tribute? Budget that low already? Straight embarrassment #AISlop”
X even put a community note on the video, which read, “This video was created with AI and needs to be appropriately labeled as such.” Only time will tell what happens next, but this video didn’t land the way the company intended at all.
What’s your take on WWE using AI art like this? Do you think that they could do better? Let us know what you think in the comments section!
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