GTA V Actor Ned Luke Calls Out 'Bulls**t' AI Chatbot Using His Voice

Ned Luke, the voice actor behind Grand Theft Auto V's (GTA V) protagonist Michael De Santa, has taken to social media to denounce an AI chatbot utilising his voice without authorisation.

The AI chatbot came under the spotlight after being discovered by PCGamesN in the form of a now-deleted post on X (formerly Twitter) that promoted the bot, offering a "realistic voice conversation with Michael De Santa."

Luke, upon learning about this unauthorised use of his voice, responded to the situation with a scathing comment on the chatbot's voice replication software, calling it "fucking bullshit."

"Absolutely nothing cool about ripping people off with some lame computer estimation of my voice. DON'T WASTE YOUR TIME ON THIS GARBAGE..." Luke said in his response.

Roger Clark, known for his role as Arthur Morgan in Red Dead Redemption 2, joined the conversation, asserting that "the real Michael will never be replaced."

Luke clarified that he is not concerned about being replaced, saying he “just hates these fuckers” and is annoyed that the “shitty union is so damn weak that this will soon be an issue on legit work.”

WAME, the developer associated with the controversial chatbot, then issued a statement acknowledging the intricate relationship between AI technology advancements and ethical/legal considerations.

“In light of the recent controversy surrounding the utilization of Mr. Ned Luke’s voice in our application, we at WAME wish to express our profound understanding and concern. This incident has highlighted the intricate interplay between the advancement of AI technology and the ethical and legal realms.”

“WAME commits to protecting the rights of voice actors and creators while advancing ethical AI practices. We believe this controversy serves as a pivotal moment in harmonizing AI technology with relevant legal statutes.”

Recently, Luke also hit back at claims that Grand Theft Auto VI (GTA VI) has gone too “woke” after the game’s first trailer revealed the game’s first female protagonist.

Upon the trailer’s release last month, some fans took umbrage with the news that the new game would largely feature a woman named Lucia alongside her partner in both love and crime, Jason.

Disgruntled players took to social media to slam the franchise for becoming “woke”, with one eyebrow-raising comment reading, “Diversity off the bat on [sic] that trailer”.

Another added, “Hope it doesn’t end up being a woke alphabet soup community dumpster fire.”

Amid the wild chatter, Luke hit back in an interview with IGN: “Lucia’s hard, man. In the trailer, she looked good.”

“You get a lot of these clowns out here going, ‘Rockstar’s going woke, they’re caving into the wokeness of the world.’ First of all, there’s been other female protagonists in the past, but not in something as huge as this.”

GTAVI is set to be released in 2025.