‘Grand Theft Auto’ Players Stopped From Recreating Charlie Kirk Assassination Online - Forbes
January 13, 2026 at 6:40 PM
Rockstar Games has moved to curb user-generated content in Grand Theft Auto Online tied to the public assassination of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk, removing multiple player-made missions and preventing new ones from being created using his name.
What happened
- Rockstar removed several community missions referencing Kirk and added his name to the game’s profanity filter, blocking players from creating or searching for content using it.
- One deleted mission, reported by Variety, placed players on a rooftop to shoot a character named "Charlie Kirk," mirroring the circumstances of his killing. Its title: "We Are Charlie Kirk."
- PC Gamer found at least half a dozen related missions before the purge; some variants using alternate spellings continue to appear.
Cultural ripple
- The removed mission’s title matches an AI-generated track, "We Are Charlie Kirk," credited to Spalexma. The song briefly topped Spotify’s viral chart after Kirk’s death and has surpassed 4 million streams.
Background
- Kirk, a right-wing activist and head of Turning Point USA, was shot and killed during a September event at Utah Valley University. The incident deepened partisan divides: GOP figures, including President Donald Trump, blamed the “radical left” before a motive was confirmed, while left-leaning outlets described Kirk as controversial or divisive and right-leaning media framed it as an attack on conservatism.
- Online reactions were starkly split. Vice President JD Vance urged employers to discipline workers who celebrated the killing, and roughly 145 people were fired or suspended for related comments. ABC suspended Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show after he discussed Kirk’s death, following threats of action from the FCC.
Why it matters
- Rockstar’s takedowns highlight the growing pressure on platforms with user-generated content to swiftly moderate depictions of real-world political violence and prevent targeted harassment or copycat scenarios.