The first major cast member has confirmed his appearance in Grand Theft Auto 6, seemingly going off Rockstar’s tightly controlled marketing script.
Stephen Root, who voices Bill Dauterive and Buck Strickland on the animated series King of the Hill, confirmed his involvement in GTA 6 in an interview with the Associated Press.
“Yeah, you’re gonna see me in it,” he said. “It’s coming out November 19th, is the latest I know of. I think from the first rollout of GTA they were doing maybe almost a year ago they had my character in there. And there are too many people who knew me from King of the Hill and my voice! So I think that secret kind of got divulged then.”
That’s a nod to GTA 6 Trailer 2, which featured a character who sounded so much like Root that fans put two and two together and — now we know — came up with the right answer. We know this character to be Brian Heder, a drug trafficker and apparent boatyard owner seen speaking to Jason about paying rent. “Just go get me my cheques!” he shouts as Jason heads indoors.
We see much more of Heder in the recent GTA 6 Extended Look, where he offers Jason words of advice. We also meet his wife, Lori Heder. Here’s the official blurb from Rockstar’s GTA 6 website:
“Brian’s a classic drug runner from the golden age of smuggling in the Keys. Still moving product through his boat yard with his third wife, Lori, Brian’s been around long enough to let others do his dirty work.
“Brian’s letting Jason live rent-free at one of his properties — so long as he helps with local shakedowns, and stops by for Lori’s sangria once in a while.”
“I’m so happy to be involved with it. It’s an amazing thing to look at,” Root added when asked what it was like working on GTA 6, clearly trying not to give too much away.
Remarkably, Rockstar has yet to confirm any GTA 6 actors, leading fans to try to work out the cast for themselves. We don’t even know who plays Jason and Lucia, the game’s dual protagonists. Perhaps we won’t until the game is out in November and the credits roll.
While you wait to find out, check out IGN’s extensive GTA 6 coverage, including our interview with Rockstar’s Rob Nelson on what to expect.
Wesley Yin-Poole
Director, News
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at [email protected] or confidentially at [email protected].