Grand Theft Auto V

Grand Theft Auto V is a 2013 action-adventure film distributed by Metro Astro Pictures & Rockstar Films. It is the seventh main entry in the *Grand Theft Auto* series, following 1997's *Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony*, and 2006's *Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories.*

## Plot

In 2004, Michael Townley (Anthony Stockily), Trevor Philips (Phillip Brown), and Brad Snider (Edward Marquez) partake in a failed robbery in Ludendorff, North Yankton, resulting in the first being presumed dead. Nine years later, Michael lives with his family in the city of Los Santos under the alias Michael De Santa (William Windom), having made a secret agreement with the Federal Investigation Bureau (FIB) agent Dave Norton to stay hidden. Across town, gangster Franklin Clinton (Shawn Fonteno) is working for a corrupt car salesman and meets Michael while attempting to fraudulently repossess his son's car. The two later become friends. When Michael finds his wife sleeping with her tennis coach, he and Franklin chase the coach to a mansion, which Michael destroys in anger. The owner of the mansion, drug lord Martin Madrazo, demands compensation. Michael returns to a life of crime to obtain the money, enlisting Franklin as an accomplice. With the help of Michael's old friend Lester Crest, a disabled hacker, they rob a jewellery store to pay off the debt. Meanwhile, Trevor, who lives in squalor on the outskirts of Los Santos, hears of the heist and realises it was Michael's work; Trevor had believed Michael was killed in the Ludendorff heist. Trevor finds Michael and reunites with him, forcing Michael to reluctantly accept him back into his life.

As time goes on, the lives of the protagonists spiral out of control. Michael's criminal behaviour prompts his family to leave him. When he later becomes a movie producer, he comes into conflict with Devin Weston (Antoine Wellington), a billionaire venture capitalist and corporate raider, who attempts to shut down Michael's studio. Michael thwarts his efforts and inadvertently kills his assistant, causing Devin to vow revenge. Meanwhile, Franklin must rescue his friend Lamar Davis (Tim J. Thomas) from his former friend and rival gangster Harold "Stretch" Joseph (Alfred Bergeson), who attempts to kill them to prove himself to his new gang. Concurrently, Trevor attempts to consolidate his control over various black markets in Blaine County, waging war against The Lost outlaw motorcycle club, Latin American street gangs, rival meth dealers, private security firm Merryweather, and triad kingpin Wei Cheng (Gregg Shen).

Having broken his agreement with Dave by committing heists again, Michael is coerced by Dave and his superior, Steve Haines (Paul Douglas), to perform a series of operations alongside Franklin and Trevor to undermine the International Affairs Agency (IAA). Under Steve's direction and with Lester's help, they attack a convoy carrying funds for the IAA and steal an experimental chemical weapon from an IAA lab. As Steve comes under increasing scrutiny, he forces Michael and Franklin to erase evidence against him from the FIB servers. Michael takes the opportunity to wipe the data on his activities, destroying Steve's leverage over him.

After reconciling with his family, Michael starts planning his final heist with Trevor, Franklin, and Lester: raiding the Union Depository's gold bullion reserve. However, Trevor discovers that Brad was not imprisoned as he was led to believe, but killed during the Ludendorff heist and buried in the grave marked for Michael. Deducing that he was supposed to be killed in Brad's place, Trevor feels betrayed and leaves Michael for dead following a standoff with Cheng's henchmen, causing friction within the group and threatening to undermine their plans. Meanwhile, Steve betrays Michael and Dave, and they become caught in a Mexican standoff between the FIB, the IAA, and Merryweather. Trevor aids Michael and Dave, feeling only he has the right to kill Michael, agreeing to perform the Union Depository heist with the latter and part ways afterward.

The heist is successful, but Franklin is afterwards approached by Steve and Dave, who contend that Trevor is a liability, and Devin, who seeks revenge on Michael. Franklin has three choices: kill Trevor, kill Michael, or attempt to save both in a suicide mission. Should Franklin choose to kill either Michael or Trevor, he ceases contact with the man he spares and returns to his old life. Otherwise, Michael and Trevor reconcile and the trio, aided by Lamar and Lester, withstands an onslaught from the FIB and Merryweather before going on to kill Cheng, Stretch, Steve, and Devin. The three protagonists cease working together but remain friends.

## Development

Rockstar Films began to develop *Grand Theft Auto V* in 2007, around *Grand Theft Auto V*'s release. Development was conducted by a team of more than 1,000 people, including Rockstar North's core team and staff from parent company Rockstar FIlms' studios around the world. The proprietary Rockstar Advanced Film Engine (RAFE) was overhauled for the game to improve its draw distance rendering capabilities. The Euphoria and Bullet software handle additional animation and rendering tasks. Having become familiar with the DVD and Blu-ray over time in June 2013, Rockstar Films found they were able to push the consoles' graphical capabilities further than in previous games. Analyst estimations place the game's combined development and marketing budget at more than GB£170 million (US$265 million), which would make it the most expensive game ever made at that time.

The open world was modelled on Southern California and Los Angeles, and its design and in-film render constituted much of the film's early work. Key members of the game world production team took field research trips throughout the region and documented their research with photo and video footage. Google Maps projections of Los Angeles were used by the team to help design Los Santos' road networks. To reflect and reproduce Los Angeles' demographic spread, the developers studied census data and watched documentaries about the city. The team considered creating the open world the most technically demanding aspect of the game's production.

### Release

The film was first announced by Rockstar Films on 25 April 2011, they released its debut trailer one week later, with an official press release acknowledging its setting. Journalists noted that the announcement ignited widespread anticipation within the gaming industry, which they owed to the cultural significance of the series. The film missed its original projected Q2 2012 release date, pushed back to 25 February 2013 to allow for further polishing. To spur film premiere, Rockstar collaborated with several retail outlets to make a special edition with extra film features. They ran a viral marketing strategy with a website for a fictional religious cult, "The Epsilon Program", that offered users the chance to feature in the game as members of the cult.