The internet has been sent ablaze by a fake video created by artificial intelligence which depicts the late Pope Francis grinning while in conversation with Michael Jackson in Heaven, and embracing members of the royal family. The late Queen Elizabeth II was pictured in one hug, alongside the likes of basketball ace Kobe Bryant.

He was seen enjoying a chat with Princess Diana and American rapper Mac Miller, with one on each arm, while he even appeared to have a virtual catch-up with I Ain't Mad At Cha star Tupac Shakur, who died in a drive-by shooting back in the 1990s. From the music world, Amy Winehouse, who died in 2011, and One Directioner Liam Payne, who fell from his hotel room balcony in 2024, also appeared. However, it was being reunited with Michael Jackson, who had faced allegations of child sexual abuse - accusations he always denied - which sparked fury online. The musician was cleared of any wrongdoing.

Over on X, disgruntled viewers branded the video "blasphemous in the extreme" and called for it to be banned from the internet.

One exclaimed: "This is one of the most sickening and horrendous things I've ever seen. How dare you desecrate the Pope's memory like this!!"

A second branded the odd video "low-key disrespectful", while a third declared it was "definitely the most dystopian thing I've seen today".

"I know it was meaning to be heartbreaking or whatever but this kind of stuff has to stop," someone else agreed.

It comes after concerns were raised about the unregulated use of AI videos on the internet and how in some circumstances the realistic technology could make it difficult to distinguish fact from fiction and reality from imagination.

Other famous faces who appeared alongside the Pope in the video, created just days after his funeral, included World Cup-winning footballer Diego Maradona and Jumanji actor Robin Williams.

Another extraordinary highlight of the video featured scientist Stephen Hawking, who was still in the wheelchair he'd had on earth, and boxing icon Muhammad Ali - real name Cassius Clay.

One incredulous viewer questioned the choice of celebrities present, sarcastically writing: "Ah yes, the Pope's closest friends: Tupac and Liam Payne", while another took a more serious tone, adding: "I hate this on so many levels."