GTA 4's Niko Bellic voice actor pay divides fans on social media

Michael Hollick, the voice actor for GTA 4’s protagonist Niko Bellic, is among the most underrated artists in the Grand Theft Auto community. Fans recently had a discussion about the payout for his work in Rockstar Games, where many surprising details were disclosed. A Redditor named u/CallMeJimMilton reported that the American gaming studio paid only $100,000 to the artist, which is not considered much for his service.

However, fans have had varying opinions regarding Michael Hollick’s payout for his role as Niko Bellic. More details are mentioned below.

---

Fans are divided on Rockstar Games’ payout for GTA 4’s voice actor Michael Hollick

TIL Michael Hollick, the voice actor for Niko Bellic, was only paid $100,000 for 15 months of voice acting and motion capture work. GTA IV grossed roughly $600 million dollars which equates his pay to 0.16% of the total revenue. He also isn’t Russian byu/CallMeJimMilton inGTA

On December 25, 2023, u/CallMeJimMilton shared a thread on the r/GTA subreddit claiming that Rockstar Games only paid 0.16% of the total revenue it made by selling Grand Theft Auto 4.

According to the Redditor, Michael Hollick worked for 15 months on the project before Rockstar Games released it on April 29, 2008. He was paid $100,000 for his service, which included voice acting and motion capture work.

User u/CallMeJimMilton further added that the studio made roughly $600 million in profit from the title. Michael Hollick’s payout is a fraction of the total income.

The thread quickly gained traction, with many sharing their opinion on the subject. A user named u/sleepysalomander stated that the voice actor of the popular GTA character did not fault Rockstar Games for the low payout:

Comment byu/CallMeJimMilton from discussion inGTA

Another user, u/Dynastydood, said that $100,000 seemed a suitable amount for a confidential project at the time:

Comment byu/CallMeJimMilton from discussion inGTA

User u/hey-im-root commented that $100,000 for a year was a justifiable amount for artists during the 2000s era:

Comment byu/CallMeJimMilton from discussion inGTA

However, user u/babyjrodriguez stated that both Rockstar Games and Michael Hollick’s agents should have re-negotiated the deal for the voice actor:

Comment byu/CallMeJimMilton from discussion inGTA

Grand Theft Auto 4 is one of the most successful GTA titles from Rockstar Games. While u/CallMeJimMilton claimed that the title made $600 million in profits, it remains available for purchase across various digital video game stores.

This means the studio is still profiting from the video game even 15 years after its release. However, readers should take the information in this article with a grain of salt as such sensitive matters are difficult to verify without an official source.