Rockstar Games is suing the BBC over its Grand Theft Auto TV movie

By Matt Gerardi | May 21, 2015 | 10:27pm

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Rockstar Games and its parent company, Take-Two Interactive, have filed a suit against the BBC over the Grand Theft Auto docu-drama the network began filming last month. According to a statement Rockstar provided to IGN, the developer has not been involved in the film and claims Game Changer, the creatively named made-for-TV movie in question, infringes on its trademarks. “Our goal is to ensure that our trademarks are not misused in the BBC’s pursuit of an unofficial depiction of purported events related to Rockstar Games. We have attempted multiple times to resolve this matter with the BBC without any meaningful resolution,” the statement says.

The purported events the BBC is hoping to depict focus on Grand Theft Auto’s development, success, and subsequent controversy. As Rockstar co-founder Sam Houser, Daniel Radcliffe would go toe-to-toe with Bill Paxton as Jack Thompson, the infamous lawyer and activist who campaigned against the series and developer. Given the media’s track record of depicting Grand Theft Auto—and the totally outrageous content that Thompson crusaded against—it’s not much of a surprise that Rockstar and Take-Two would want to halt the movie’s production if they’re unable to influence its creation.