Lawrence Sullivan, also known as the Florida Joker, has issued a "final warning" to Rockstar Games and is demanding $5 million for the parody of him in the GTA 6 reveal trailer.
15.12.2023 - 14:17 / pcgamer.com / Lindsay Lohan
Say what you like about Lawrence Sullivan, also known as the Florida Joker, but you have to admire his tenacity. After calling Rockstar out for a character in the Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer who bore a resemblance to his own viral mugshot and demanding "a mil or two" in recompense, he's now upped the stakes even more, dying his hair purple and donning a prison jumpsuit in order to highlight the similarity between himself and Rockstar's character and demanding an «extra million dollars» too.
In a post to TikTok, Sullivan recorded himself—purple-haired and jumpsuited—standing in front of a YouTube search results page for «GTA 6 Joker,» with the results consisting entirely of videos about his campaign against Rockstar. Addressing the camera, Sullivan declares that he's giving GTA «the biggest free marketing you got in the entire history of running this GTA game, for that I want an extra million dollars.» You can find the full video below.
«Y'all are taking forever to respond back to me,» Sullivan tells Rockstar, before shifting focus to a YouTube thumbnail featuring both Sullivan's real-life (and pre-hair-dye) heavily tattooed face and the character who featured in the GTA 6 trailer. «You see that? Find another character. Find another person in Florida they portrayed that character from, and I'll wait! I will wait! GTA, we gotta talk!»
Now, while I think Sullivan is probably correct that Rockstar drew inspiration from his mugshot for the character that appeared in the GTA 6 trailer, I also think his cause is doomed. Nevertheless, Sullivan is still giving the company both barrels. «You think I'm playing? You got three days! Three days! Before my lawyers go crazy on this case!» The video was uploaded two days ago, meaning, I suppose, that Rockstar only has mere hours to reply.
Plenty of the reporting on Sullivan's campaign has highlighted its similarity to a case waged by Lindsay Lohan, who took Rockstar to court over claims the company had used her likeness in GTA 5 promo material. That case eventually got tossed out, but that doesn't seem to deter Sullivan. «This is not like the Lindsay Lohan case. I! Got! Hard! Evidence! Hard evidence!» declares Sullivan, although it's not entirely clear if he's referring to anything beyond the YouTube thumbnails behind him.
I suspect, somehow, Rockstar is not particularly intimidated by the Florida Joker's threats, and if anything regards Sullivan's crusade as a wonderful and unanticipated bit of additional viral marketing for GTA 6. But hey, who knows? Maybe he'll get his millions. Anything can happen in Florida.
Lawrence Sullivan, also known as the Florida Joker, has issued a "final warning" to Rockstar Games and is demanding $5 million for the parody of him in the GTA 6 reveal trailer.
I've never been to Universal Studios in Hollywood, but I have been to the Universal Studios Theme Park in Florida. It was so long ago that the Jaws ride was still around, and my main memory from it is the overwhelming stench of petrol from all the very real flames that surrounded the ride.
Ex Machina director Alex Garland looks like he will try to do the impossible when his new film Civil War hits theaters in 2024: depict a second civil war in the United States without directly engaging with the politics of why that war is taking place. It’s not hard to see why Garland might want to avoid thorny connections between the movie and the very real politicians and political groups openly calling for succession and open conflict in the United States. Maybe he believes there’s enough value in the arresting visuals of a modern America under siege.
Lawrence Sullivan, better known as «Florida Joker» for his extensive set of facial tattoos, has doubled down, posting a second video that asserts Rockstar owes him financial restitution for allegedly using his likeness in GTA 6.
The saga of Lawrence Sullivan, AKA the «Florida Joker», continues, as the self-appointed supervillain has again upped the ante in his effort to extract money from Rockstar Games for allegedly using his likeness in GTA 6. Dying his hair purple and donning an orange prison jumpsuit, Sullivan is adding to Rockstar's alleged bill, which he's now set at $3 million, issuing a three-day deadline for compliance before his lawyers «go crazy on this case».
The 'Florida Joker,' who believes Rockstar stole their likeness for GTA 6, has now made themselves resemble the character in question even more.
If I had a 2023 bingo card, I can guarantee that 'the voice actor for Arthur Morgan got in a TikTok feud with the Florida Joker' would not be on it. It feels like a sentence written by putting a bunch of names on a corkboard and throwing darts at it.
Red Dead Redemption 2 star Roger Clark has told the ‘Florida Joker’ to use the extra publicity the Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer has given him, rather than threatening Rockstar with lawsuits.
Red Dead Redemption 2 actor Roger Clark has suggested that the 'GTA 6 Joker' "use the notoriety" rather than seek money from Rockstar.
Grand Theft Auto 6 (GTA 6) finally got its first trailer earlier this month (December 4), and while it arrived to much applause, there was at least one person who didn't look upon it so favorably.
A Florida man who has tattooed his face heavily to resemble Batman character The Joker has claimed that GTA makers Rockstar owe him money for drawing on his likeness in the first GTA 6 trailer.
The Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer parodies several viral clips that have surfed around social media, as is series tradition, but one man now believes that his likeness inspired a certain in-game character and is demanding $1-2 million from Rockstar Games.