Johnny Klebitz

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Johnny Klebitz
Grand Theft Auto character
Johnny Klebitz.jpg
Artwork of Johnny Klebitz holding an assault shotgun
First appearance Grand Theft Auto IV (2008)
Last appearance Grand Theft Auto Online (2023)
Created by Rockstar North
Portrayed byScott Hill
In-universe information
AffiliationThe Lost Motorcycle Club
NationalityAmerican

Johnny Klebitz is the fictional protagonist of the video game Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned . [1] [2] He was created by Rockstar North and the voice and motion capture was provided by Scott Hill. He first appears in Grand Theft Auto IV as a minor character before his role as a protagonist. He also makes minor appearances in Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony and Grand Theft Auto V . [3] As the protagonist, he was a member in the fictional The Lost Motorcycle Club, [4] leading the gang in making decisions and running it throughout the game. [5] [6] He later appears in Grand Theft Auto V where he gets killed by the protagonist Trevor Philips, who smashes a bottle and stomps Johnny, killing him. [7] [8] Johnny leads his gang for much time, until Billy becomes the leader. He protects his gang and explores opportunities throughout the game, often from different characters. Eventually after Billy's death, he moves into Los Santos with his girlfriend Ashley Butler. [9] [10] He was born in 1974, making him most likely 34 during TLAD (taking place in 2008) and 39 in GTA V (mostly taking place in 2013). [11]

Contents

Johnny first appears in Grand Theft Auto 4 with no significant roles. In 2009, he was announced to be the protagonist of Grand Theft Auto IV's Downloadable content or episodic expansion pack, The Lost and Damned. He is based on typical members of outlaw motorcycle clubs. Leslie Benzies gave a brief plot of Johnny's story about a month from TLAD's release. He appears in TLAD by picking up Billy Grey, and continues his actions while under his command, until he gets arrested and Johnny finally kills him. After this, Johnny and Ashley go into Blaine County to start an expansion of The Lost MC there. His voice lines and motion capture was provided by Scott Hill, the founder of Fu Manchu (band). Johnny appears in TBoGT and one time in Grand Theft Auto V and in Grand Theft Auto Online as a ghost. Johnny received mixed reviews from game critics, some stating him to be to interesting, complex, likable and having moral traits; while others found him to be lacking, uninteresting and generally non-likable.

Development

Scott Hill provided the voice and motion capture of Johnny Klebitz in all his versions. Scott Hill playing Dan Armstrong Plexi, Fu Manchu live in The Black Sheep, Colorado Springs, 2007-03-06.jpg
Scott Hill provided the voice and motion capture of Johnny Klebitz in all his versions.

Leslie Benzies, the president of Rockstar North, wanted to introduce different stories happening in Liberty City at the same time. Instead of increasing Niko Bellic's story, they created the character Johnny Klebitz to appear as the protagonist The Lost and Damned. Benzies commented on Johnny Klebitz's occupation: "So, from a gameplay perspective, we really tried to build out the feelings and mechanics of being in a biker gang." [12] Benzies described Johnny as a loyal and long-term member of The Lost, an outlaw motorcycle gang, which he tries throughout the game to maintain and redirect it from violence, and into money-making opportunities. He, as the vice president of the gang, controls it while the president Billy Grey damages his progress and the gang itself. He becomes successful in eliminating Billy out of the gang. [13] [14]

Benzies quoted, "Johnny Klebitz is a loyal, long-term member (and Vice President) of the Lost, a notorious biker gang. Realizing that the gang cannot go on forever, and with the Lost's leader, Billy Grey [having done] a stint in state mandated rehab, Johnny's been busy focusing the gang away from mindless violence and into the more lucrative enterprise of drug trafficking. Billy's return and his somewhat self-destructive impulses send tremors through the gang, and put him at cross-purposes with Johnny, his long term friend and ally. The Lost and Damned is the story of Johnny trying to maintain his loyalty to The Lost while Billy is busy tearing the gang apart for his own ends." [12] Johnny was portrayed by Scott Hill, (live and prerecorded voice lines and motion capture) as his only acting credit. [15] [16]

Appearances

Grand Theft Auto IV

Johnny Klebitz first appears in Grand Theft Auto IV, meeting with Niko Bellic and Playboy X in Elizabeta Torres' home and then in an apartment. [a] The second time he meets with Niko in the Libertonian, a museum, booking a diamond deal. [b]

The Lost and Damned

The Lost and Damned begins with Johnny and the Lost MC riding their motorcycles to pick up the president, Billy Grey from a rehabilitation center, who instructs him to bring his motorcycle from their enemy gang Angels of Death (AOD). [17] [c] [18] Billy then becomes the leader of the gang and engage in several gang wars with the Angels of Death, [19] [d] [18] once to save their members [e] [18] and once to revenge the death of their member Jason Michaels. [f] [18] Johnny goes with his friend Jim Fitzgerald to steal bikes from the AOD and fight with them, thereafter they encounter two corrupt police officers. [g] [18] The corrupt officers, along with their many corrupt associates are killed by Jim and Johnny in an ambush. [h] [20] Johnny then goes to work under orders of Elizabeta Torres, meeting Niko and Playboy. [i] [20] Johnny gets two consecutive tasks from Congressman Thomas Stubbs, first to assassinate his uncle, [j] [20] and then to help arrested prisoners get free. [k] [20] He gets a call that his girlfriend, named Ashley Butler, is in trouble and immediately goes to help her, killing few drug addicts to get to her. [17] [l] [20]

After performing independent moves for the gang, Billy calls Johnny and informs him of a drug deal taking place. He sends Jim and Johnny to the deal, which turns out to be false, and the dealers begin attacking them. Jim and Johnny successfully clear the area of enemies. Billy tries escaping, but crashes and is arrested. [17] Billy's associate Brian Jeremy blames them for his arrest. [m] [21] Johnny becomes the president of the gang, [22] and collaborates with other motorcycles gangs to strengthen their support, meeting with bikers named Malc and DeSean. [n] [21]

Brian Jeremy calls him and Jim to a port, appearing with many members of The Lost MC, and pins the fault of Billy's arrest, before running and instructing the members to kill them. This reduces the population of the gang. [o] [21] Ray Boccino, a mafia members, tells Johnny about the location of Brian house's, where Johnny kills him despite his requests. [p] [21] He can be spared, and is killed later. [q]

Johnny starts working with Elizabeta again; stealing a van full of cocaine at a bridge toll gates with Malc and DeSean; [r] [21] rescuing a drug mule at the Francis International Airport from the Federal Investigation Bureau; [s] [23] attending another failed drug deal and escaping from the Liberty City Police Department in a whole city-chase. [t] [23] He appears to help Ashley Butler again, this time kidnapping the cousin of Niko Bellic in favor of Dimitri Rascalov. [u] [23]

Ray Boccino assigns Johnny work, hearing about him from Ashley. He tasks him to intercept a two-million-dollar diamond deal between Tony Prince and the Cook, using a huge number of the gang's members. Johnny steals the diamonds and stuffs them in garbage bags. [v] [23] The next and last time, he sends Johnny to attend another diamond deal happening in the Libertonian, along with Niko. The deal fails and Johnny escapes with the deal money, which he gives to Jim Fitzgerald. [w] [23] He receives a text from Jim, when Johnny goes there, he finds Jim being tortured by Ray's associate and is betrayed by Ray. They escape, after which Ray sends four hitmen cars to find and kill Johnny . He alone, or with the help of Terry and Clay, kill all of them. Ashley then informs Johnny of Jim's death. [x] [24]

Johnny goes into the clubhouse to meet Thomas Stubbs again. Stubbs tells him that Billy will testify against him in court and possibly be able to get Johnny imprisoned, and himself get free. Stubbs tells him that Billy is the bigger problem than Ray, and he should kill him. Johnny takes his gang to the Alderney State Correctional Facility, a prison, and gets equipped. They burst open into the facilities and kill numerous security guards, police officers and SWAT officers. Johnny goes to Billy, who is holding a knife to stab him. Johnny kills Billy by shooting him in the head with a handgun. [7] [y] [24]

The Ballad of Gay Tony

In the first mission of The Ballad of Gay Tony, Johnny is seen cruising through the streets of Algonquin on his motorcycle. [z] The second time, Johnny and The Lost MC is seen trying to intercept the two-million-dollar diamond deal, in the perspective of Luis Lopez. [aa] The last time, Johnny and Niko attend a diamond deal in the Libertonian, in the perspective of Luis, who obstructs the deal and steals the diamonds. [ab]

Grand Theft Auto V

Johnny appears in Grand Theft Auto V, seen furiously approaching Trevor Philips after learning that Trevor was sleeping with Ashley. He heads out and stops a bit far away from the trailer, and talks for some time with Trevor. Trevor tackles him and smashes a bottle over his head, then stomps him till his death. Ashley goes to his body. [ac]

Grand Theft Auto Online

Johnny appears as a ghost in "Ghosts Exposed", part of the San Andreas Mercenaries update in 2023. "Ghosts Exposed" is a challenge where players must take nine ghost photos appearing only during certain times, [25] and end the challenge by clicking the photo of Johnny Klebitz's ghost in the spot where Trevor killed him. He also speaks some voice lines about Trevor and floats. [26] The ghost model and voice lines were reported by players far before the update, and was dismissed by finding no related items in the game files and placed as an urban legend. This speculation was confirmed when Ghosts Exposed was released, serving as an easter egg and remembrance of Johnny. [27] [28]

Reception

Martin Robinson of IGN remarked that Johnny's story was good but was not as unique as Niko, nor had the many hours of playtime as Niko. He said that Johnny felt like an imposter to the previous Liberty City explorable by Niko and did not have many action scenes or takeovers. [29] Justin Calvert of GameSpot described Johnny as not being a "particularly likable protagonist." He remarked the trait of Johnny spending so much time riding motorcycles, which is not the case in Grand Theft Auto V. [30] Christian Donlan of Eurogamer found Johnny's story to be simple, but told and shown in a brilliant way. He stated Johnny to be empathetic and terrifying but touching: "While the tale is simple enough, the telling is brilliant and often devilishly subtle. Johnny and Billy are entirely empathetic leads - the former gruff yet care-worn, the latter gently terrifying, but somehow touching - and their performances set new standards for videogame naturalism." [31] Mikael Hansen of Gamereactor asserted that Johnny's story was the same high quality as of Grand Theft Auto IV. He praised the meeting of Johnny with Niko and Luis, gives recognition to both games. He approved the shift from Niko to Johnny, changing perspectives and introducing new gameplay with his gang members. [32] Tom Orry of VideoGamer said while he prefers Niko over Johnny, the acting was of high-quality and brilliantly portrays the story of The Lost MC. [33] Andy Kelly of TheGamer determined Johnny to be one of the best Grand Theft Auto protagonists, although no hero. He states Johnny's story to be depressing and miserable. He finds Johnny to be a criminal and doing wrong actions, although still being good. He criticizes Trevor for killing Johnny. [34]

Hilary Goldstein of IGN asserted Johnny to not be a "likeable guy." He stated Johnny to not be up to par with other protagonists, and considers him to be "horrible a person as any other crook in Liberty City" and "difficult to care about." [35] John Walker of Rock Paper Shotgun specified Johnny to neither be the most interesting or complex. He indicates at the lack of background and story, and considers Niko to be better and more interesting. He specifies the actions of Johnny to make progress of his gang and allies to be common sense rather than turning into a narrative story, but he states the story as fine and well-acted. He says Johnny to not have enough reason. He praises Johnny's ability to work in group and helping members. [36] Rebecca Armstrong of The Independent considers Johnny's story to be well-supported by the additions and "Brilliantly told and beautifully realised." [37] George Reith of GamingBolt approved Johnny as "quite a complex and oddly likeable anti-hero". [38]

References

  1. ↑ Fujii, Nicholas (November 16, 2023). "The 10 Most Underrated Protagonists In Video Games" . Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  2. ↑ Paez, Danny (April 21, 2021). "Every Grand Theft Auto Protagonist Confirmed Dead In Canon". Screen Rant . Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  3. ↑ Andress, Joseph (February 18, 2021). "Grand Theft Auto 4 Characters Who Appear in GTA 5" . Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  4. ↑ Natividad, Sid (August 27, 2019). "Grand Theft Auto: 5 Characters We're Sad Died (And 5 We Were Happy To See Go)". TheGamer. Retrieved January 10, 2026.
  5. ↑ Wilson, Kyle (February 17, 2018). "Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned Released 9 Years Ago Today" . Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  6. ↑ Williams, Isaac (July 26, 2023). "Video Game Characters No Expected To Die In A Sequel" . Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  7. 1 2 Mitchell, Robbie (May 3, 2024). "Rockstar Games Where The Main Character Dies" . Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  8. ↑ Breslin, Richard (January 29, 2025). "GTA 6 Trevor 'death' has left fans divided" . Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  9. ↑ Williams, Callum (September 10, 2023). "The Best GTA Protagonists, Ranked" . Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  10. ↑ Jessey, Ben (January 23, 2024). "10 GTA Characters That Have Appeared In More Than One Game" . Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  11. ↑ Smith, Mark (February 22, 2025). "Oldest Playable Characters In Rockstar's Games, Ranked" . Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  12. 1 2 Goldstein, Hilary (February 11, 2009). "GTA IV: The Lost & Damned In-Depth" . Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  13. ↑ Thorsen, Tor. "Grand Theft Auto IV DLC due Feb. 17" . Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  14. ↑ Mutzner, Andreas (November 10, 2009). "Xbox 360 review: Who's the toughest gang?!". Outnow.ch. Retrieved January 11, 2026.
  15. ↑ Wojnar, Jason (January 1, 2024). "Grand Theft Auto: Every Protagonist Voice Actor" . Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  16. ↑ "6 GTA protagonists that deserved more closure than Rockstar gave them". The Times of India. June 18, 2025. Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  17. 1 2 3 Frech, Ricky (May 4, 2025). "10 Best Grand Theft Auto Protagonists" . Retrieved January 8, 2026.
  18. 1 2 3 4 5 "GTA 4 The Lost and Damned: Missions 1-5". May 11, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  19. ↑ Thadani, Marcos (October 3, 2014). "Top 10 Best Pieces of Video Game DLC" . Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 "GTA 4 The Lost and Damned: Missions 6-10". May 11, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  21. 1 2 3 4 5 "GTA 4 The Lost and Damned: Missions 11-15". May 11, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  22. ↑ Ruch, Skeith (June 28, 2024). "Every Grand Theft Auto Protagonist, Ranked" . Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  23. 1 2 3 4 5 "GTA 4 The Lost and Damned: Missions 16-20". May 11, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  24. 1 2 "GTA 4 The Lost and Damned: Missions 21-22". May 11, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  25. ↑ Zucarelli, Stephanie (October 12, 2023). "GTA Online: All ghost locations for $250k reward & Ghosts Exposed collectibles". CharlieINTEL. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  26. ↑ Lemay, Ryan (October 12, 2023). "GTA Online player gives former protagonist's ghost a touching sendoff and it's perfect". Dexerto.com. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  27. ↑ Lucas, Cameron (October 23, 2023). "GTA Online: The Ghost of Johnny Klebitz Explained". GameRant. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  28. ↑ Zwiezen, Zack (October 13, 2023). "How GTA Online's Halloween Update Made A GTA V Urban Legend Real". Kotaku. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  29. ↑ Robinson, Martin (May 11, 2012). "GTA IV: The Lost & Damned UK Review". IGN. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  30. ↑ Calvert, Justin (April 13, 2010). "Grand Theft Auto IV: Episodes from Liberty City Review". GameSpot. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  31. ↑ Donlan, Christian (February 16, 2009). "Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned review". Eurogamer. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  32. ↑ Hansen, Mikael (March 3, 2009). "Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned". Gamereactor. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  33. ↑ Orry, Tom (June 6, 2021). "Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned Review". VideoGamer. Retrieved January 9, 2026.
  34. ↑ Kelly, Andy (December 3, 2021). "I'm Still Not Over What Rockstar Did To Johnny Klebitz In GTA 5". TheGamer. Retrieved January 10, 2026.
  35. ↑ Goldstein, Hilary (February 16, 2009). "GTA IV: The Lost and Damned Review". IGN. Retrieved January 10, 2026.
  36. ↑ Walker, John (April 29, 2010). "Wot I Think: GTA IV: The Lost And Damned". Rock Paper Shotgun . Retrieved January 10, 2026.
  37. ↑ Armstrong, Rebecca (March 7, 2009). "Games Review: Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned". The Independent . Retrieved January 10, 2026.
  38. ↑ Reith, George (June 23, 2010). "Grand Theft Auto IV: Episodes From Liberty City Review". GamingBolt. Retrieved January 10, 2026.

Appearances

  1. ↑ Rockstar North (April 29, 2008). Grand Theft Auto IV (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Blow Your Cover".
  2. ↑ Rockstar North (April 29, 2008). Grand Theft Auto IV (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Museum Piece".
  3. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Clean and Serene".
  4. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Angels in America".
  5. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "It's War".
  6. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Action/Reaction".
  7. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Liberty City Choppers".
  8. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Bad Cop Drop".
  9. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Buyer's Market".
  10. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Politics".
  11. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Off Route".
  12. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Coming Down".
  13. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "This Shit's Cursed".
  14. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Hit the Pipe".
  15. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "End of Chapter".
  16. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Bad Standing".
  17. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Random Encounter - Brian Jeremy".
  18. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Heavy Toll".
  19. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Marta Full of Grace".
  20. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Shifting Weight".
  21. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Roman's Holiday".
  22. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Diamonds in the Rough".
  23. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Collector's Item".
  24. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Was It Worth It?".
  25. ↑ Rockstar North (February 17, 2009). Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Get Lost".
  26. ↑ Rockstar North (October 29, 2009). Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "I Luv LC".
  27. ↑ Rockstar North (October 29, 2009). Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Frosting on the Cake".
  28. ↑ Rockstar North (October 29, 2009). Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony (PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Not So Fast".
  29. ↑ Rockstar North (September 17, 2013). Grand Theft Auto V (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4). Rockstar Games. Level/area: "Mr. Philips".
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