Who is Danny Dyer and What’s Behind Rockstar’s Buzz About His Newest Film?

If you follow Rockstar Games on X (the Everything App formerly known as Twitter), then you may have been surprised, confused, or a combination of the two when you saw the GTA studio posting about the film Marching Powder and its star, Danny Dyer.

From our friends Nick Love and Danny Dyer, the absolute legends behind The Football Factory…@MarchingPowder_ — a proper naughty comedy out tomorrow in the UK and Ireland.

Get tickets now at https://t.co/Zj4EBgRKVO and look out for details on worldwide release soon. pic.twitter.com/15u4DEpeDW

— Rockstar Games (@RockstarGames) March 6, 2025

Why on earth would Rockstar be posting about a small British film to its audience of 21 million followers? And who is this Danny Dyer guy? Don’t worry, we’re here to explain.

Who is Danny Dyer?

Danial John Dyer, better known as Danny Dyer, is an actor from East London. And if you live in the UK, he needs no introduction. As Rockstar’s post states, he’s an “absolute legend”. If you don’t speak British slang, then please refer to the Urban Dictionary’s definition of the term to better understand Dyer’s reputation:

“A person who embodies the pinnacle of all the important social aspects. Any person who is funny, reckless, original and sensitive in the right measures is likely to be nominated a legend by his associates. A person to whose persona you aspire.”

Dyer has been acting since 1993 and has built up a reputation for playing rough-and-ready working class characters. That’s in part due to his public persona; he’s considered somewhat outspoken on societal and government issues, and is known for his “tough uncle” approach to life. For example, in 2010 when offering advice to readers of Zoo magazine, Dyer told a man attempting to recover from a recent break-up that he should go “on a rampage [drinking session] with the boys.”

Dyer is also beloved for his many wild social media posts, such as this gem:

Roll on bonfire night……….it’s gonna get strapped to a great big massive fuck off Rocket so it can join the other Furbys in the sky…

— Danny Dyer (@MrDDyer) September 12, 2013

How is Danny Dyer Connected to Rockstar?

If you’ve no idea who Danny Dyer is, but are a big fan of the Grand Theft Auto games, then you’ve almost certainly heard his voice. Dyer plays Kent Paul in GTA: Vice City, the manager of Scottish rock band, Love Fist. He reprised the role for GTA: San Andreas, in which Kent represented a new band, the Gurning Chimps, and later produced for rapper Madd Dogg.

Dyer has a more important connection to Rockstar, though, and it comes from an unusual place. In 2004, Dyer starred in The Football Factory, a British film directed by Nick Love and produced by… Rockstar Games. Yes, once upon a time Rockstar helped create a feature film.

Marching Powder, a new film releasing in the UK and Ireland this week, reunites Danny Dyer with Nick Love. The project, while not a sequel to The Football Factory, pulls on many of the same ideas, including football hooliganism (see: violence among fans), heavy drinking and drug use, and a uniquely British gritty sense of humour.

Despite the post on X, Rockstar has nothing to do with Marching Powder. It seems the studio is simply championing the film because of its prior connection to Dyer and Love and their work on The Football Factory.

Is Vice City’s Kent Paul Returning for GTA 6?

Short answer: we’ve no idea. And this social media post certainly has nothing to do with GTA 6. But hey, we might as well theorise anyway. Could Kent Paul show up in Grand Theft Auto 6?

It’s important to remember that GTA is split up into two very different eras: the 3D era (games released on the PS2 and PSP) and the HD era (GTA 4 onwards). Both are considered their own universes – storylines from one do not continue into the other. That’s why GTA 5’s Los Santos looks entirely different to San Andreas’ equivalent city, and why there’s no direct mention of characters from the PS2-era games in GTA 4 and 5.

That’s not to say there’s no overlap, though. CJ’s home cul-de-sac, Grove Street, appears in GTA 5, and many of the gangs that first featured in the 3D universe are present in the HD universe, including the Ballas. Lazlo, the infamous ponytailed scumbag, has also been in a number of GTA games spanning the two eras. And here’s the kicker: Kent Paul has his name on the Vinewood Walk of Fame.

So is there a chance that Kent Paul could return for GTA 6? It’s certainly possible. But a post on X about Marching Powder certainly doesn’t bring us any closer to confirmation.

Matt Purslow is IGN’s Senior Features Editor.