Rockstar Co-Founder Reveals Niko Bellic Was Almost Killed Off in GTA 4’s Ending

Dan Houser, co-founder of Rockstar Games, revealed that in the original script for Grand Theft Auto 4, main character Niko Bellic was supposed to die. He spoke about this during the Lex Fridman Podcast while discussing the ending of Red Dead Redemption.

According to Houser, the studio initially considered a more tragic finale.

Even without that, GTA 4 is often regarded as Rockstar’s darkest project — the story of an immigrant facing moral compromises and shattered dreams stood in stark contrast to the carefree tone of earlier entries. Niko’s death would have made the ending even bleaker than the final version.

After abandoning that idea, Rockstar gradually became much bolder about the fates of its protagonists. John Marston and Arthur Morgan died in Red Dead Redemption and Red Dead Redemption 2, while in GTA 5 players can decide who among the trio — Michael, Trevor, or Franklin — will die in the finale.

Houser noted that taking the risk of killing Marston in the first Red Dead Redemption “ultimately paid off.” This approach later became one of Rockstar’s hallmarks, where a hero’s tragedy often serves as the story’s emotional climax. Perhaps that’s another reason behind the excitement Houser recently mentioned when discussing GTA 6.