Ah, the historic case of Lindsay Lohan vs Grand Theft Auto V.
It would appear that the court has allowed Lohan to move forward with her lawsuit of the open world crime classic. Why? Because she claims that the developers stole her likeness.
A little background for anyone just tuning in to this one – back in July 2014, Lohan claimed that GTA V’s ‘Lacey Jonas’ character was in fact a reference to her – and she wasn’t best pleased.
GTA V parent publisher Take-Two Interactive asserts that Jonas and Lohan are similar only in that they are both young blonde women, and suggested that Lohan is only doing this for publicity purposes. Surely not?
The case seemed to hang in limbo for a few years, until New York Supreme Court judge Joan Kennedy wrote in a ruling on Friday (March 11) that the case won’t be dismissed.
Lohan essentially argues that GTA V doesn’t represent ‘transformative’ use of her likeness (which is protected as free speech under the First Amendment). She suggests that Rockstar and Take-Two were interested in financial gain above all else.
A line from the complaint reads:
The Defendants were in the business of selling games as opposed to artists displaying artwork in galleries for profit where unauthorized images or portraits of individuals were reproduced in limited editions as opposed to the mass production for commercial promotion and financial gain.
Of course, many people reckon Lohan is only in it to make a quick bit of cash and a decent chunk of publicity, but that’s not for us to say. That hasn’t stopped GTA V voice actor Ned Luke from weighing in on Twitter though…
You can read judge Kennedy’s full ruling here if you fancy an electric evening of fun.
There’s also a video that shows off footage of Lacey Jonas (Lindsay’s alleged double) in GTA V:
Lacey is basically a young actress hounded by drug problems, paparazzi, and a string of bad decisions – Lindsay Lohan, or simply a tired cliché for Hollywood actresses? You decide.
Whatever happens next, I’m certain this is one case we’ll all be watching with bated breath.
Ewan Moore is a journalist at UNILAD Gaming who still quite hasn’t gotten out of his mid 00’s emo phase. After graduating from the University of Portsmouth in 2015 with a BA in Journalism & Media Studies (thanks for asking), he went on to do some freelance words for various places, including Kotaku, Den of Geek, and TheSixthAxis, before landing a full time gig at UNILAD in 2016.