It seems that the parting of ways between former GTA V producer Leslie Benzies and Rockstar Games wasn't as amicable as we thought.
The current, rather complex and volatile situation which we're about to explain is pretty obscure. There's no telling what really went on in the background and who is to blame, but since the initial news made the rounds, there have been some official statements about the matter.
Back in the Septermber of 2014, Leslie Benzies went on a sabbatical which ended up dragging on longer than initially planned and culminated in the announcement that he decided not to return to Rockstar. The official announcement came from Rockstar itself, along with comments from Take-Two Interactive's Strauss Zelnick, who praised Benzies but said that he does not know anything about Benzies' future plans.
As far as the statements were concerned, both parties bid each other farewell on good terms. This wasn't surprising at all considering Benzies' long and fruitful history with Rockstar and his influence on the GTA games. Benzies has been producer on the franchise since GTA III and many think that his influence was one of the key elements that catapulted the IP to its current fame.
However this most recent development indicates that things weren't all sunshine, rainbows and heartfelt goodbyes. Benzies has in the past few days sued Take-Two Interactive, Rockstar North and the Houser brothers for $150 million dollars.
$150,000,000.
The lawsuit concerns unpaid royalties on Take-Two's behalf. Benzies' is also claiming that in the months leading up to him leaving for sabbatical, several attempts to force him out of the company were made. He also allegedly discovered other infractions on Rockstar's part. The law firm representing him provided a statement as to why Benzies is going to court.
While on sabbatical, Mr. Benzies discovered numerous deceptions... sought to force him out of the company and terminate his portion of royalty payments based upon arbitrary actions...
When elaborating on the subject, the rep also revealed that there was quite a bit of friction between Benzies and Sam Houser, one of the co-founders of Rockstar. The two, along with Dan Houser entered a business arrangement with Take-Two Interactive in 2008, under whose label their games are being published since.
One of the first points where the tale deviates is whether or not it was Benzies' decision to leave Rockstar. According to Take-Two, Benzies chose not to return, while Benzies claims he attempted to go back to work on the 1st of April (bad timing?) in 2015 only to find his ID badge annulled. Once he was let in, he was promptly removed — according to his account, at least.
