Photographer Alper Yesiltas uses artificial intelligence to imagine what deceased icons like Princess Diana and Michael Jackson would have looked like if they had lived, and the results are disturbing.
They may be gone, but their faces are forever frozen in time. Or rather, they were.
when the photographer Alper Yesiltas began to dabble in artificial intelligence, he quickly realized its potential. “Everything imaginable can be demonstrated in reality,” he said bored panda.
So Yesiltas, who is based in Istanbul, Turkey, began to think about what he could do with emerging technology. He wanted to create something that would make him happy, like seeing the faces of beloved icons who died too soon.
He created an AI-based project called “As If Nothing Happened,” according to my modern met. In it, Yesiltas explores what famous figures would look like today if they were still alive.
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Kurt Cobain Nirvana’s never seemed to recover from his traumatic childhood, and he died by suicide in 1994. Twitter
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If Kurt Cobain were alive, he would be 55 years old in 2022.
Bored Panda/Alper Yesiltas
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Freddie Mercury was famous for being the lead singer of Queen, but he tragically died of AIDS in 1991.Twitter/@freddie_mercury
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If nothing had happened to Freddie Mercury, he would be 76 years old in 2022. alperyesiltas/Instagram
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Selena Quintanilla, sometimes nicknamed “The Mexican Madonna,” was murdered by the president of her fan club in 1995.ilfjg/Wikimedia Commons
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If Selena were still alive, she would be 51 years old in 2022. alperyesiltas/Instagram
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health ledger He was an award-winning Australian actor who starred in many iconic films before his accidental drug overdose in 2008. Jose Carlos Pozo/Wikimedia Commons
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If Heath Ledger hadn’t died young, he’d be 43 in 2022. alperyesiltas/Instagram
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amy came he was a musical dynamo in a small package. The British singer died of alcohol poisoning in 2011. Greg Gebhardt/Wikimedia Commons
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If Amy Winehouse hadn’t died young, she’d be 39 in 2022. alperyesiltas/Instagram
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Controversy still surrounds the death of actor and martial artist Bruce Lee in 1973 from cerebral edema. Facebook/Bruce Lee
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If nothing had happened to Bruce Lee, he would be 82 years old in 2022.Bored Panda/Alper Yesiltas
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Tupac Shakur was an influential rapper who was passionate about speaking out about the plight of African-Americans. The 25-year-old was killed in a drive-by shooting in 1996. Facebook/2PAC
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If Tupac hadn’t been shot, he’d be 51 in 2022. alperyesiltas/Instagram
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Diana Princess of Wales She joined the British royal family in 1981, when she married Prince Charles. She died in a car accident in 1997 while trying to escape from the paparazzi. Twitter/@royalfocus1
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If nothing had happened to Princess Diana, she would be 61 in 2022. alperyesiltas/Instagram
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phoenix river he was a talented actor who won hearts with his boyish good looks. Sadly, he died of a drug overdose in 1993 outside the Viper Room nightclub in Hollywood.Alan Luz/Wikimedia Commons
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If River Phoenix were still alive, he would be 52 years old in 2022. alperyesiltas/Instagram
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Musician Jimi Hendrix died in 1970 after choking on his own vomit, likely after taking too many sleeping pills. Breezin704/Wikimedia Commons
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If nothing had happened to Jimi Hendrix, he would be 80 years old in 2022. alperyesiltas/Instagram
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John Lennon, both as a former Beatle and as a solo artist, had a profound impact on the world. His death in 1980 at the hands of a deranged fan still has people mourning the loss of an icon. Joost Evers/Anefo/Wikimedia Commons
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If John Lennon were alive, he would be 82 years old in 2022. alperyesiltas/Instagram
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Janis Joplin he was one of the most talented singer-songwriters of the 1960s. His untimely death in 1970 was ruled an accidental heroin overdose. Facebook/Janis Joplin & Big Brother and The Holding Company
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If Janis Joplin hadn’t died tragically young, she’d be 79 in 2022. Bored Panda/Alper Yesiltas
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Jim Morrison he was as enigmatic in his death as he was in his life. The charismatic but troubled singer of The Doors was found dead in 1971 of heart failure, but when and how he died is still hotly debated. PXHere
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If nothing had happened to Jim Morrison, he would be 79 years old in 2022. alperyesiltas/Instagram
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Michael Jackson is a polarizing figure in the celebrity world. His death from cardiac arrest in 2009 led to the arrest of his personal doctor, who had prescribed the drugs that caused the singer’s death.Chris Walter/WireImage/Getty Images
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If nothing had happened to Michael Jackson, he would be 64 years old in 2022. alperyesiltas/Instagram
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aaliyah was a groundbreaking R&B singer who died at the age of 22 when her Miami-bound plane crashed just a minute after takeoff in 2001. mika-photography.com/Wikimedia Commons
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If Aaliyah’s plane hadn’t crashed, she’d be 43 in 2022. alperyesiltas/Instagram
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Paul Walkerbeloved actor and philanthropist, shared his Fast and Furious the character’s love of sports cars. Tragically, that passion led to Walker’s death in a car accident in 2013. André Luis/Wikimedia Commons
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If nothing had happened to Paul Walker, he would be 49 years old in 2022. alperyesiltas/Instagram
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James Gandolfini was an award-winning actor who wowed audiences with his role in The sopranos. He died of a heart attack in Rome while on vacation in 2013. VoicesFilm
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If nothing had happened to James Gandolfini, he would be 61 in 2022. alperyesiltas/Instagram
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Philip Seymour Hoffman He was known for taking on offbeat roles, but the character actor was prolific at his craft. He died of a drug overdose in 2014. Georges Biard/Wikimedia Commons
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If nothing had happened to Philip Seymour Hoffman, he would be 55 in 2022. alperyesiltas/Instagram
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This Is What 18 Famous Figures Would Look Like If They Were Still Alive Today
The results of these photos of aging celebrities are fascinating, if not a little bittersweet. The art of applying age progression to photographs isn’t new, but the use of today’s hyper-realistic artificial intelligence adds an extra layer of believability.
However, we must be aware that the same technology that makes this possible can also be abused to make fake photos and videos to deceive, as in the case of the mom from pennsylvania who created fake nude photos of her daughter’s rival cheerleaders. Clearly, the invention can be dangerous if it falls into the wrong hands. Fortunately, technology is getting better at detecting harmful deepfakes, according to american scientist.
Above, see what 18 beloved famous figures would look like today if they were still alive. And below, find out about the tragic circumstances surrounding the deaths of two gallery celebrities that rocked the mid-’90s to the core and shattered millions upon millions of young music fans.
Kurt Cobain’s death
As the leader of Nirvana, Kurt Cobain was instrumental in creating the grunge music genre in the early 1990s. Yet the troubled young man who became a superstar almost overnight harbored some deep anxieties. Heroin was the therapeutic drug of the day, and Cobain regularly self-medicated.
In March 1994, Cobain threatened to commit suicide. Police arrived at the Seattle home he shared with his wife, Courtney Love, where they found four weapons, despite the fact that Cobain was an anti-war man. In late March, Love and Cobain’s bandmates performed an intervention, and the star reluctantly agreed to check into a rehab center. Unfortunately, he left after only three days.
Kevin Mazur/WireImage via Getty ImagesKurt Cobain quickly gained fame as the lead singer of Nirvana, but his mental health issues led to his untimely death in 1994.
By April 5, he was dead. An employee who came to Cobain’s home to install security lighting found the singer in a room above the garage with a fatal gunshot wound to the head. Along with his body, investigators found a 20-gauge Remington shotgun, a pair of sunglasses, a box of drugged cigarettes, cigarettes and one of the the most examined suicide notes in history.
Cobain had taken near-fatal amounts of Valium and heroin, and then pulled the trigger.
the death of selena quintanilla
In the early 1990s, 23-year-old Selena was on her way to stardom. The Latin singer was widely adored in the world of Tejano music for her talent, fashion sense and authentic personality. She was on the cusp of worldwide fame, having just won a 1994 Grammy Award for Best Mexican-American Album.
president of Selena’s full-time fan club and manager of the clothing boutique, yolanda saldivar, and the singer had a close relationship. Some even thought that Saldívar was obsessed with the singer.
However, that relationship soured when Selena and her family began to suspect that Saldívar was stealing money and eventually fired her. Saldívar denied the accusations but did not put up a fight to keep her job.
Arlene Richie/Getty ImagesSelena performing in Houston just a month before her death.
On March 31, 1995, Selena went to the Days Inn in Corpus Christi, Texas, where Saldívar was staying to retrieve some final financial documents. Shortly after her arrival, a maintenance man reportedly heard a loud bang and saw Saldívar chasing Selena with a gun.
Selena ran into the hotel lobby and collapsed. She had a gunshot wound in her back. Her last words were: “Yolanda…room 158.” She died at the hospital soon after.
Saldívar then entered into a nine-hour standoff with the police. She threatened to kill herself multiple times before finally giving up. A jury convicted her of first degree murder and sentenced her to life in prison. She claims the shooting was an accident.
After looking at these photos of famous people if they were still alive today, read about 11 of the most tragic celebrity deaths. So see the living descendants famous people throughout history.
