IRL Florida Joker sends Rockstar legal threat after demanding millions over GTA 6 parody
The real-life ‘Florida Joker’ has threatened Rockstar Games with legal action after allegedly being parodied in the Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer
After the long-anticipated Grand Theft Auto 6 trailer was finally released on December 4, albeit ahead of schedule after being leaked online, fans analyzed the trailer frame-by-frame where they spotted numerous easter eggs relating to real-life locations, past GTA games, and memes.
Among them appeared to be a reference to the ‘Florida Joker’ — who went viral across social media after being arrested, as the man’s mugshot resembled the infamous DC Comics villain.
The ‘Florida Joker’, whose real name is Lawrence Sullivan, quickly voiced his frustrations over Rockstar allegedly portraying him in the GTA 6 trailer, insisting that he speaks with them. A few days later on December 8, Sullivan pressed the devs again, this time demanding millions for using his “likeness.”
‘Florida Joker’ threatens Rockstar with legal action over GTA 6 trailer
Now, in a TikTok post on December 12, the ‘Florida Joker’ has threatened Rockstar with legal action. “GTA I’m giving you the biggest free marketing you got in your entire history of running this GTA game. For that, I want an extra million dollars,” he demanded. “You’re taking forever to respond to me.”
Sullivan continued: “Find the other person in Florida they portrayed that character from. I’ll wait, I will wait. GTA we got to talk.”
He added: “You think I’m playing? You’ve got three days, three days before my lawyers go crazy on this case. This is not like the Lizzie Lohan case. I got hard evidence.”
While Sullivan thinks he has a solid case, Red Dead Redemption 2 Arthur Morgan actor Roger Clark thinks otherwise. Hitting back, the actor put the ‘Florida Joker’ on blast, suggesting he should “capitalize” on the newfound fame he’s gotten since the trailer was released.
“They’ve had people like you trying to sue them for decades,” Clark explained. “They are loaded up man. They know exactly what they can and cannot get away with.”
With that said it’s unclear whether or not we’ll see a parody of the ‘Florida Joker’ in the actual game. For now, we’ll just have to wait and see when Grand Theft Auto 6 releases in 2025.