Ned Luke (born October 4, 1958) is an American actor and YouTuber. He is known for portraying Michael De Santa in the 2013 video game Grand Theft Auto V, and reprised the role in 2025 for Grand Theft Auto Online. Throughout his acting career, Luke has appeared in 29 films and television shows, in addition to performing in over 100 commercials. He is also known for livestreaming video games, including Grand Theft Auto V on YouTube, and has 519,000 subscribers there.
Early life Ned Luke was born on October 4, 1958. In the late 1980s, Luke had a job as a mobile billboard driver, which he described as a "chick magnet." During this time, he was a two-time contestant on Win, Lose or Draw.
Career Working with Rockstar Games His agent suggested he audition for the role of Michael De Santa, one of the three protagonists of Rockstar Games' 2013 video game Grand Theft Auto V. Luke initially scoffed at the idea of being in a video game, but after reading the script he decided to proceed with the audition and, alongside Shawn Fonteno and Steven Ogg, was eventually cast. Grand Theft Auto V went on to set several sales records and has become the 2nd highest grossing video game in history.
Luke continued his professional relationship with Rockstar Games after the release of Grand Theft Auto V. Upon learning that Red Dead Redemption 2 was in development, he expressed interest in joining the Western-themed project. Thanks to his positive rapport with the company, Rockstar allowed him to portray a non-playable character using both voice and motion capture. However, Luke later revealed that his voice had been dubbed over by another actor. He attributed this change to "creative differences" and speculated that Rockstar may have wanted to avoid drawing player attention to his character. In 2025, Luke reprised his role as Michael De Santa in Grand Theft Auto Online, for the "A Safehouse in the Hills" update, marking his first appearance as the character since Grand Theft Auto V.
Other work Luke also guest-starred on Boardwalk Empire and served as host of the Future Games Show at Gamescom 2024. In 2024, Luke partnered with ASUS Republic of Gamers (ROG) as a brand ambassador, starring in their "ROG Travel Agency" global commercial campaign alongside fellow Grand Theft Auto V co-stars Fonteno and Ogg.
Personal life Luke has been married to his wife Amy Sax since 1997. Together, they have a son.
On November 23, 2023, Luke was harassed during a Thanksgiving livestream of Grand Theft Auto Online on his YouTube channel. While some fans accused Rockstar Games of failing to protect players' IP addresses, Luke refuted these claims and attributed the incident to his personal information being previously leaked online. In December 2025, on a livestream with actor Rob Wiethoff, Luke was swatted again. His conversation with the police was cordial, with both recognizing the frequency of the swatting incidents. That same week, Luke shared a letter on his Instagram from the Department of Justice, which invited him to attend a sentence hearing for a swatter related to his case.
Luke is deaf in his right ear.
Filmography Film Year Title Role Notes 1984 The Bear Football Player 1991 Rover Dangerfield Raffles Voice only, supporting role 1996 The Nutty Professor Construction Worker Uncredited 1999 Citation of Merit Sergeant Smith Short film 2017 American Gothic Bill 2024 Order for Ben Dad Short film
Television Year Title Role Notes 1988 Win, Lose or Draw Himself Game show contestant 1992 Angel Street Officer Episode: "The Blonde in the Pond" 1994 Guiding Light Sheriff 2 episodes 1995 NYPD Blue Lawyer Episode: "Cold Heaters" 1996 Murder One Conspiracy Guy Episode: "Chapter Eleven" 1996 Renegade Andy Warwick Episode: "The Milk Carton Kid"1997On the LineOfficer AlTelevision film 1997 The Burning Zone 2nd Officer Episode: "Critical Mass" 1997 High Incident Gary Butterworth Episode: "Remote Control" 1999 General Hospital Body Guard 2 episodes 1999 City Guys Lonnie Collins Episode: "Miracle on 134th Street and Lexington Avenue" 2000 The Pretender David Arnold Episode: "Junk" 2000 JAG Senior Chief Petty Officer Bracken Episode: "Drop Zone" 2000 The Huntress Detective Ellard Episode: "The Kid" 2000 Diagnosis Murder Timmons Episode: "The Patient Detective" 200220032013 Law & Order: Special Victims Unit Mr. WilmontRoger SwansonMr. Thurber Season 3: "Popular"Season 4: "Mercy"Season 15: "Surrender Benson" 2004 Third Watch Ron Connelly Episode: "Greatest Detectives in the World" 2005 As the World Turns Detective Langstorm 2 episodes 2005 Jonny Zero Officer Muncie Episode: "To Serve and to Protect" 2002–2005 All My Children Fire Chief / Private Investigator 3 episodes 2005 Law & Order Ken Cosgrove Episode: "New York Minute" 2009 Katana Executive Episode: "Pilot" 2013 Boardwalk Empire Boorish Man Episode: "All In" 2015 Unfiltered Randolph Wiley Lead role, unreleased 2024 Reasonable Doubt Coach Powell Episode: "This Can't Be Life"
Video games Year Title Role Notes 2013 Grand Theft Auto V Michael De Santa Voice and motion capture 2018 Red Dead Redemption 2 Moonshiner Motion capture, voice dubbed over by other actor2025Grand Theft Auto OnlineMichael De SantaVoice and motion capture; "A Safehouse in the Hills" DLC
Commercials Year Title Role Notes 2024-2025Asus Travel AgentRepublic of Gamers
Accolades YearNominee/workAwardResult 2014Grand Theft Auto VBehind the Voice Actors Award for Best Vocal Ensemble in a Video Game
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