Grand Theft Auto V developer Rockstar Games and publisher Take-Two Interactive Software have hit back at actress Lindsay Lohan over a lawsuit she filed against the two companies earlier this year, describing the case as frivolous.
Lohan, star of teen comedy Mean Girls, claimed that Scotland-based developer Rockstar Games modeled Lacey Jonas, a minor character in the open-world action game, on her and demanded unspecified damages from both Rockstar and publisher Take-Two Interactive Software.
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Take-Two Interactive sold over 33 million copies of GTA V by May this year, eight months after its September 2013 release, generating around $2 billion in retail sales. Rockstar Games has continued to support GTA V with additional content, and the game’s release on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles, expected this fall, will further boost those sales figures. In short, GTA V was, and continues to be, big news.
In her lawsuit, Lohan claimed that Rockstar Games used her voice and image for the character of Lacey Jonas, including her hats, hair style, sunglasses, and clothing line products. The Jonas character is found hiding from the paparazzi during a random event in GTA V and describes herself as “the voice of a generation,” saying “I’m the closest thing to royalty these people have.”
Take-Two Interactive Software insists that Lohan’s voice, name, and likeness aren’t used in the game and the only resemblance between Lohan and Jonas is the fact that both are young blonde women.
Rockstar Games and Take-Two Interactive Software want the case dismissed and Lohan to pay their legal fees.
