Rockstar has never been shy about looking to the cinema for a little inspiration. Plenty of the finest moments in Rockstar titles are remarkable thanks to a little silver screen shove in the right direction. It doesn't take much analysis to spot a nod to Scarface in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City or glimpses of The Proposition in Red Dead Redemption.

Grand Theft Auto V will be lengthy and packed with memorable, unique missions; that much we can safely assume. However, there have been plenty of La-La Land movie moments we'd love to be able to recreate in a video game – and Los Santos will be the perfect environment for a few Hollywood homages.

The city of Los Angeles is certainly no stranger to celluloid, so here are some elements from a few particularly prevalent L.A.-based films we'd love to see co-opted and reimagined inside the world of Los Santos.

Remember the scene in Lethal Weapon 2 when Riggs pulled down Arjen Rudd's entire stilt house with his pickup truck? Dude tugs a house down a hill with nought but a chain and a GMC dually.


We'd definitely love to settle a disagreement with some kind of Los Santos kingpin by destroying his snooty Vinewood home in the same fashion.

Speaking of Lethal Weapon, how about a riff on the freeway chase in Lethal Weapon 4? We spotted a semi trailer in the first GTA V trailer, so it seems they're returning from GTA: San Andreas. Leaping from a car to a truck and back again, taking time out for a quick ski behind said truck on an upturned piece of furniture, could be ace.

The extent of the GTA V world teased by Rockstar will be perfect for car chases and vehicular action. Some Speed-style bus action certainly wouldn't go astray. That said, you can't talk about Hollywood car chases and the city of Los Angeles without mentioning To Live and Die in L.A. The huge chase sequence in this often overlooked gem, one that took six weeks to shoot, culminates in a lengthy blast against oncoming freeway traffic. We know we'll be able to book down the wrong side of a Los Santos freeway in GTA V any time we like, but doing it in the context of a chase like this would rock all kinds of roll.



Gripping shoot-outs are a game like GTA V's bread-and-butter and, when it comes to L.A. shoot-outs, Hollywood has it covered. Heat is naturally the first film to mind. Rockstar already paid its respects to Michael Mann's contemporary crime classic in GTA IV, but L.A. is Heat's natural environment and Los Santos deserves a running firefight every bit as consuming as the one Liberty City played host to in the fan-favourite 'Three Leaf Clover' mission.

But what about an amusement park shoot-out, like the one in everyone's least-favourite Beverly Hills Cop movie? Fingers crossed Los Santos has its very own Wonderworld tucked away somewhere.



L.A. has played host to a number of films about police crossing onto the wrong side of the law over the years, and we imagine Los Santos will be just as ripe for such tales. You should recall Officer Tenpenny, GTA: San Andreas' main villain, who was as crooked as dog's hind leg.

Sitting down with a few crackers like Training Day, Dark Blue and Street Kings should get you suitably warmed-up for the inevitable bent law enforcement officer(s) you'll encounter in Los Santos.



GTA titles are traditionally much more than just a bucketload of bullets, bodybags, bent cops and bad drivers. There's the humour to consider too.

GTA: San Andreas went behind-the-scenes with the record business; you may remember wannabe rapper OG Loc, musical manager Kent Paul and Ice-T's Madd Dogg. It'd be great this time around to have a little fun with the movie business.


Get Shorty is a prime example; the kind of stuff that goes on in that movie would not look out of place in a game like GTA. Drug dealing Hollywood investors, an out-of-hours Hollywood stuntman as hired muscle, a cocky superstar and a besieged producer – all being strung along by a cool-as-a-cucumber out-of-town hardman.

What Just Happened is another good example. You may not have seen it, but in one of the film's subplots Bruce Willis parodies himself as a prima donna actor who refuses to shave his bushy new beard before production starts on his next movie. A GTA-flavoured homage to the sorts of behind-the-curtain malarkey that drives films like Get Shorty and What Just Happened would be fantastic.


What other L.A.-based films spring to mind when you think of possible sources of inspiration for GTA V and its reborn Los Santos? Let us know below!


Luke is Games Editor at IGN AU. You can track him via MyIGN or chat to him and the rest of the Australian team by joining the IGN Australia Facebook community. Think fast, look alive and die hard!

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