How GTA 5 Calls Back To A Popular Vice City & San Andreas Character

Rockstar is extremely fond of references in the Grand Theft Auto games. This is usually to pop culture, but often to series lore, and sometimes both at the same time – a primary example being its Donald Trump surrogate, Donald Love. An instance of pure lore is Kent Paul, someone who appears in the most subtle way in GTA 5 but has been around since Vice City.

Within Vice City Paul is revealed to have moved from Kent, England – “Kent” is actually a nickname – in 1982. He manages the hair metal band Love Fist but is oddly well-connected with SWAT teams, the Outlaw Motorcycle Club, and shady lawyer Ken Rosenberg. Paul provides the player’s character in Vice City, Tommy Vercetti, with a vital tip about the game’s opening ambush, and goes on to become a recurring character. He has a lesser role in GTA: San Andreas as the manager of an English band called the Gurning Chimps, and later as a producer for Madd Dogg. Protagonist CJ has to rescue Paul in the desert, and he makes appearances in several other missions.

The one reference to Paul in GTA 5 is a star on the Vinewood Walk of Fame, located on Los Santos’ Vinewood Boulevard. Perhaps surprisingly, a symbol marks him as a film celebrity rather than one in music – that may be an even subtler reference to this character from Vice City, in which Paul says he acted in British adult films and wants a role in one of Tommy’s productions after the latter buys a film studio. That’s an attention to detail even most of Rockstar’s other references don’t chase.

GTA 6: What’s Kent Paul’s Future In Grand Theft Auto?

Whether or not Paul will appear in GTA 6 is unknown. That game is rumored to be set in a modern-day Vice City rather than in the 1980s, in which case Rockstar would need to cook up an excuse for him to return to the location – if he did become a movie star, it would be in Los Santos. It might be easier to insert the character into a retro Vice City, but that ground is already well-trod.

Either scenario might be dependent on whether Rockstar can sign the right voice talent. Paul was originally voiced by British actor Danny Dyer, known for things like EastEnders, Human Traffic, and The Football Factory. Rockstar seems to prefer keeping actors consistent, and indeed that could be a reason why he was missing in Grand Theft Auto 5 – that game was released in 2013, around the same time Dyer was busy with shows like Hollyoaks Later. Alternately, the company may just have wanted to open the floor to new characters and plotlines.

About The Author

Roger Fingas
(307 Articles Published)

Originally from Ottawa, Canada, Roger now lives with his family in Austin, Texas. He has years of experience in tech writing, and his gaming specialties include FPS and VR games on the PC.

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