GTA 6 isn't even out yet, but it's already causing a ruckus in real-life Miami-Dade as the county's sheriff and a commissioner oppose a reported pitch for a marketing deal that'd temporarily transform parts of the area into Vice City.
Late last month, it was reported (via The Miamian) that Miami-Dade County officials had approached GTA 6 maker Rockstar Games with a pitch deck proposing to turn locations such as the Miami International Airport, Metrorail stations, and other buildings into Vice City-themed attractions. At the time, Carlos Suarez, a spokesperson for the county's mayor Daniella Levine Cava, stated that "some conversations with Rockstar about potential opportunities around the launch of GTA 6" had happened, but "nothing has been formally agreed to or approved."
Well, regardless of whether Rockstar Games is actually interested in pursuing this idea, some Miami-Dade folks are directly opposed to it happening at all. A Republican Miami-Dade County commissioner, Juan Carlos Bermudez, and Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz have spoken out against the concept, with Bermudez stating that "we should be promoting the Miami-Dade we have worked so hard to build, not a fictional version of our community defined by crime and violence."
Via WSVN, Bermudez claims he's "not against video games, but to go out and get a video game where – which glorifies not only our first responders getting shot, but also pedestrians and residents – it's nonsensical."
Republican sheriff Cordero-Stutz similarly points to GTA's crime-centric themes, adding: "At a time when law enforcement is working every day to reduce violent crime, prevent robberies and car thefts, combat drug trafficking, and build stronger relationships between our deputies and the communities we serve, I believe we need to seriously consider the message we send when our own government promotes a fictional identity centered around many of those same crimes."
Miami Herald reporter Doug Clark has also shared a letter sent to Mayor Levine Cava by Miami-Dade's clerk of the court Juan Fernandez-Barquin and the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida's chief judge Ariana Fajardo Orshan, in which they "respectfully request that all Miami-Dade County courthouses and court-related facilities be expressly excluded" from any potential marketing, branding, or promotion related to GTA 6.
Miami-Dade’s clerk and chief judge on GTA marketing: Leave the courts out of it https://t.co/QFnMJO0vxS pic.twitter.com/kDd7GvAwFmSeptember 3, 2026
"Each day, these facilities are places where victims seek justice, defendants answer to the law, witnesses participate in proceedings, families confront difficult circumstances, and judges, attorneys, court personnel, and law enforcement professionals carry out their constitutional and statutory responsibilities," the letter continues.
"The individuals who enter our courthouses are not characters in a fictional world. They are real people dealing with real consequences, sometimes involving violence, loss, family separation, criminal allegations, and other deeply personal and consequential matters. The solemnity and integrity of these proceedings must remain paramount."
Miami Herald also points out that the timing of sheriff Cordero-Stutz's opposition to this proposed marketing deal coincides with her and current mayor Levine Cava getting votes on the County Commission, specifically for competing funding proposals for the Sheriff's Office in the county's 2027 budget. Cordero-Stutz wants a 12% tax-funding increase, while Levine Cava is suggesting half of that at 6%. The same report notes that commissioner Bermudez is thought to be a potential candidate to replace the Democrat Levine Cava as mayor in 2028.
Again, it remains to be seen whether Rockstar Games takes up the marketing deal in the first place. As previously promised, it's fair to say that GTA 6's launch marketing is definitely now in full swing following the recent extended look, and we can likely expect that to continue as we get closer to its November release date.
