GTA 4’s Cousin Roman actor joins calls for Rockstar to remaster game

Jason Zumwalt, the voice actor for Roman Bellic in Grand Theft Auto 4, wants Rockstar to remaster the game for modern consoles and has explained why he thinks it hasn’t happened yet.

Given the record-breaking success of GTA 5 and the unprecedented hype of GTA 6, it’s easy to forget just how popular GTA 4 was when it arrived in 2008. The first HD entry in the series remains one of the top 50 best-selling games ever, and is considered one of the best open-world games of all time.

However, while other games in the franchise, including Vice City and San Andreas, have been remastered and re-released, GTA 4 has never been given the same treatment.

Now, the actor who played Roman, the cousin of Niko Bellic and bowling maniac, has called for Rockstar to give the game some love.

Jason Zumwalt says actor contracts could be preventing GTA 4 remaster

“I would [love to see that] too. I’d love to see that, man,” Zumwalt said in an interview with Love It Film, after he was asked directly about a GTA 4 remaster for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.

“It feels like they could do it. I don’t know why they haven’t done it yet.”

Rockstar Games

Although Zumwalt didn’t know for sure why the developer had neglected GTA 4, he speculated that it could have something to do with the contracts for its voice actors.

“Maybe it has something to do with those SAG contracts. Maybe opening up that can of worms is just something they’re not willing to do. If it is a can of worms.”

He went on to mention Michael Hollick (Niko Bellic) and his dispute with Rockstar, after reportedly only receiving $100,000 for his work on the game.

“When I did the Roman thing, it happened to coincide with Michael bringing up his money situation and Rockstar in the New York Times. We both kind of came under fire and we were like, ‘Man, are we not going to get brought back to do these DLCs?’ But they ended up bringing us back.”

Only time will tell if Grand Theft Auto 4 gets the same treatment as The Trilogy and GTA 5, but with GTA 6 due to arrive on November 19, it’s unlikely to happen anytime soon.