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Michael Hollick

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Michael Hollick
Hollick at Comicon
Alma materCarnegie Mellon University (BFA)
OccupationActor
Years active1995–present
Spouse
Angela Tsai
​
(m. 2007)​
Children2

Michael Hollick (born August 5, 1973) is an American actor and Broadway performer. He is best known for providing the voice and motion capture for Niko Bellic in the 2008 video game Grand Theft Auto IV[1][2] and portraying Scar in The Lion King musical.

Early life

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He attended Carnegie Mellon University, where he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.[3]

Career

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Since 1995, Hollick has appeared in numerous plays, including De La Guarda, Fuerzabruta on off-Broadway, and Tarzan and Jumpers on Broadway.[4][5][6][7][8]

Other credits include minor TV roles in Law & Order, Hawaii Five-0, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and Sex and the City.[9][10] Hollick played the villainous character Scar in the Las Vegas production of The Lion King.[11]

In 2004, he was hired by Rockstar Games to perform both the voice and motion capture for Niko Bellic, the lead character in Grand Theft Auto IV. Released in April 2008, the game received widespread critical acclaim and became a massive financial success, with Hollick receiving praise for his gritty, realistic portrayal of the troubled protagonist.

Following the Grand Theft Auto IV's release, Hollick had a public dispute with Rockstar Games and their parent company Take-Two Interactive. Despite the game's financial success (earning over $600 million in its first week alone), Hollick was reportedly paid only $100,000 for 15 months of work.[1][2] He publicly criticized Rockstar Games and the video game industry for underpaying actors, highlighting in interviews that, unlike film or television, voice actors in games at the time received no royalties or residuals—sparking a broader conversation about fair compensation in gaming.[12] However, Hollick primarily placed the blame on the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) for failing to secure better protections for voice actors, rather than on Rockstar themselves.[13]

On July 12th 2025, Hollick would join Cameo.[14]

Personal life

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Hollick has been married to actress Angela Tsai since 2007.[15] On July 22, 2010, Tsai gave birth to their son.[15] In 2015, she gave birth to their daughter.[16]

Filmography

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Film

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Year Title Role Notes
2019 Stop Marshall Movitz Short film

Television

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Year Title Role Notes
2000–2002 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Coach, Paramedic Episode:
"Wrong Is Right"
"Justice"
2002 Sex and the City Dickie Sailor Episode: "Anchors Away"
2006–2009 Law & Order Nick Carvahal, Minister Episodes: "Fame", "Dignity"
2009 Endorphin 2.7 Crash & Fall Endorphin Guy Screaming Episode: 2
2007 Law & Order: Criminal Intent Barry Epstein Episode: "Privilege"
2008 Internet Superstar Niko Bellic/Guest Episode: "Live in San Francisco"
2014 Hawaii Five-0 Naval Intel Officer Lt. Granger Episode: "Makani 'Olu a Holo Malie"

Video games

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Year Title Role Notes
2008 Grand Theft Auto IV Niko Bellic Voice and motion-capture
2009 Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned Dialogue reused from the original game
Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony
2011 Homefront Motion-capture
2015 Dying Light: Cuisine & Cargo Ronald "Razor" Tomasino Cuisine & Cargo DLC Content

Theatre

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Year Title Role Notes
1995 Cabaret Singing Waiter [17]
1995 The Secret Garden Timothy [17]
1995 The Most Happy Fella Jake [17]
1997–present The Lion King Scar, Pumbaa, Zazzu [17]
1998 Godspell Performer [17]
2004 Jumpers Greystoke [17]
2006–2007 Tarzan Mr. Clayton, Kerchak [17]
2007–2014 Fuerza Bruta Performer [17]

Awards and nominations

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Year Award Award category Title of work Result
2008 Spike Video Game Award Best Male Voice Actor Niko Bellic in Grand Theft Auto IV Won

References

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  1. ^ a b Schiesel, Seth (May 21, 2008). "A Video Game Star and His Less-Than-Stellar Pay". The New York Times. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
  2. ^ a b "Niko's voice earned about from GTA IV". Joystiq.com. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
  3. ^ "About Michael Hollick". www.michaelhollick.com. Archived from the original on February 18, 2015.
  4. ^ "Theater Review; Odd Brits A-Leaping With Bodies Or Brains". The New York Times. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
  5. ^ "De la Guarda - Musical, Comedy". TeleCharge.com. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
  6. ^ Isherwood, Charles (October 25, 2007). "Don't Slump: Stand, Gawk, Collaborate". The New York Times. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
  7. ^ "Cast & Creative". FuerzabrutaNYC.com. Archived from the original on October 26, 2007. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
  8. ^ "Tarzan: The Broadway Musical (Original Broadway Cast Recording)". Target.com. Archived from the original on November 4, 2013. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
  9. ^ "Anchors Away Season 5, Episode 1". Seplis.com. Archived from the original on November 4, 2013. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
  10. ^ "Michael Hollick Filmography". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. 2008. Archived from the original on May 2, 2008. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
  11. ^ "Life as Uncle Scar in The Lion King — and Scar's new baby". LasVegasSun.com. Archived from the original on January 27, 2013. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
  12. ^ Vasanth Sridharan (May 21, 2008). "Grand Theft Auto IV Voice: I've Been Robbed! (TTWO)". Business Insider. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved March 24, 2017.
  13. ^ "A video game star and his less-than-stellar pay". CNET. Retrieved May 8, 2025.
  14. ^ "Michael Hollick - Personalized videos on Cameo". Cameo. Retrieved July 22, 2025.
  15. ^ a b "Unexpected birth of 'Lion King' actor's son is drama to the Max". LasVegasSun.com. July 22, 2010. Retrieved October 24, 2011.
  16. ^ "It's good to see the 'King'". Timesonline.com. Retrieved January 31, 2023.
  17. ^ a b c d e f g h "Michael Hollick theatre profile".
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