GTA 6 is scheduled for release on November 19, 2026, but an unexpected scandal is already brewing around the casting. Robert Bough, familiar to fans as Agent Steve Haines, revealed that his 60-plus attempts to get on the project ended in complete disregard from the studio. He shared this in an interview with Turkish blogger Burak on August 6.
Rejection itself is not uncommon, but this is different. Bough is no stranger to the Rockstar world: he voiced Red Harlow in Red Dead Revolver, Troy in the GTA IV expansion, and then Haines in the fifth game. Three projects under his belt—and 60 silent “nos.” The actor honestly admitted that he didn’t care whether he got the lead role or a tiny cameo; he simply wanted to work with a familiar team again. “I’ve auditioned for over 60 roles—big and small.” “I didn’t get a single one,” his source quotes him as saying.
What particularly offended Boagh was the lack of even formal feedback. He compared it to the feeling of falling in love, only to have the person simply disappear. And this raises a reasonable question: is this a coincidence or a systemic policy?
It turns out that Rockstar does have an unspoken principle: they deliberately avoid celebrity voices to avoid breaking immersion. Studio president Sam Houser had recently explained that it’s much easier to work with actors who are enthusiastic and don’t have a professional ego. In this light, the experienced Boagh, already associated with the GTA universe by fans, could have become “too recognizable” for a new story.
And another curious fact: in GTA V, one of the endings allows you to kill Steve Haines, and this is considered canon. So bringing his character back would have been logically strange. But Boagh could have gotten a completely different role, but he didn’t. Why he didn’t is a mystery. Perhaps the studio is relying on fresh faces and is simply expanding its talent pool.
Incidentally, this isn’t the first such incident. Michael Hollick, the voice of Niko Bellic, earned only $100,000 for his eighteen months on GTA IV and saw no royalties. After that, his character never appeared in the series again. Coincidence? Unlikely.
Bough, incidentally, stumbled across some snippets of the script during auditions, but is bound by a non-disclosure agreement and can’t disclose them. He apologized to Rockstar for airing dirty laundry, but emphasized: “The truth is the truth.”
The PC version of GTA 6 hasn’t been announced yet, but the console release is scheduled for three and a half months. Whether Boagh will have time to get any answers before then is a big question.
