A man who believes gaming publisher Rockstar stole his likeness in the Grand Theft Auto VI trailer has announced his intention to sue.
Lawrence Sullivan, better known as the ‘Florida Joker’ posted a viral TikTok clip in which he called out Rockstar for what he believes to be the use of his likeness.
During the trailer, which quickly became one of the most popular videos on YouTube upon its release, a purple-haired man with face tattoos appears in prison garb which Sullivan claims mirrors a mugshot taken of him.
“You know who they got that inspired by? By me,” he said. “Just look me up, Florida Joker, Miami Joker, you know what I’m talking about.
“GTA, we got to talk.”
A number of the tattoos on the video game character’s face mirror that of Sullivan’s, including black rings around his eyes and a tattoo of a “Chelsea smile” in which a blade is used on the cheeks of a victim.
His tattoos echo that of Jared Leto’s Joker from the Suicide Squad series – hence his nickname.
Sullivan was arrested in 2017 for possession of a concealed firearm and possession of marijuana where his mugshot gained notoriety as an internet meme.
In response, Red Dead Redemption 2 voice actor, Roger Clark told Sullivan that Rockstar Games was “lawyered up, man”.
“They know exactly what they can and cannot get away with. If I were you, I would use the notoriety they just threw your way to your advantage.
“Capitalise on it somehow. You ain’t getting a job at Home Depot with that face.”
Sullivan’s call to Rockstar prompted another social media user to call out the games publisher for using what he believes to be his likeness.
TikTok user @zoeepoppyy, who says he is from Florida, asked Rockstar Games for money after showing his friends a clip from the Grand Theft Auto VI trailer.
“Rockstar, GTA, whoever, come on man look at it,” he said. “They come by the chain, only got one of my chains and now look at the shades, look at the hair.”