The main GTA Vice City characters — Tommy Vercetti, Lance Vance, Ken Rosenberg, Sonny Forelli, Ricardo Diaz — with their story roles and voice actors: Ray Liotta, Burt Reynolds, Dennis Hopper and more.
Whose story this is
The year is 1986. Tommy Vercetti walks out after 15 years in prison, and his boss Sonny Forelli sends him from Liberty City to Vice City to handle a deal. The deal is ambushed, the money and goods vanish, and Sonny wants his money back. Tommy hunts for those responsible and builds his own criminal empire along the way.
At his side are lawyer Ken Rosenberg, the deal’s organizer Colonel Cortez and Lance Vance, who lost his brother in the same ambush. The trail leads to drug lord Ricardo Diaz. Who gives which mission is on the GTA Vice City missions page.
From there Tommy makes contacts all over town: Umberto Robina’s Cubans in Little Havana, Auntie Poulet’s Haitians in Little Haiti, Mitch Baker’s bikers, the rock band Love Fist, the band’s manager Kent Paul from the Malibu Club, and arms dealer Phil Cassidy. Almost every one of them gives Tommy a mission chain of their own — the list is in the table below.
Main characters and voice actors
Character names are given as in the game. Actors are checked across the game credits, Wikipedia and GINX.
| Character | Who they are | Voice |
|---|---|---|
| Tommy Vercetti | the protagonist; after 15 years behind bars, Sonny sends him to Vice City | Ray Liotta |
| Lance Vance | Tommy’s partner; lost his brother in the ambush and later betrays Tommy | Philip Michael Thomas |
| Ken Rosenberg | a crooked lawyer who oversees the deal and gives the first missions | William Fichtner |
| Sonny Forelli | Tommy’s boss from Liberty City, demands his money back | Tom Sizemore |
| Ricardo Diaz | the drug lord behind the ambush | Luis Guzmán |
| Colonel Juan Cortez | a retired colonel, organizer of the deal | Robert Davi |
| Mercedes Cortez | Cortez’s daughter; acts in a film for InterGlobal Studios | Fairuza Balk |
| Kent Paul | a band manager and go-between with the criminal world | Danny Dyer |
| Avery Carrington | a Texan real estate tycoon who advises Tommy to buy businesses | Burt Reynolds |
| Umberto Robina | leader of the Cubans, Café Robina in Little Havana | Danny Trejo |
| Auntie Poulet | matriarch of the Haitians in Little Haiti | Youree Harris |
| Phil Cassidy | arms dealer and moonshiner, owner of Phil’s Place | Gary Busey |
| “Big” Mitch Baker | Vietnam veteran, leader of the bikers from The Greasy Chopper bar | Lee Majors |
| Mr. Black | an unseen contract-killing broker: he calls Tommy at payphones and gives five hits; he never appears on screen | not listed in the credits |
Tommy Vercetti
After the botched deal Tommy starts with small errands for Rosenberg and Cortez and ends up owning an estate, the Malibu nightclub, a print works, a film studio and several other businesses. In the finale he deals with Sonny and Lance.
Lance Vance
Lance appears early on as a man who lost his brother Victor in the same ambush where Tommy’s money disappeared. Lance gives the mission Rub Out, in which Tommy kills Diaz and takes his mansion — the future Vercetti Estate.
Later Lance betrays Tommy and dies in the final mission, Keep Your Friends Close....
Sonny Forelli and Ricardo Diaz
Sonny Forelli (voiced by Tom Sizemore) is Tommy’s boss from Liberty City. He gives the first mission, An Old Friend, and after the deal falls apart he demands his money back. Near the end his collectors start shaking down Tommy’s businesses — that is the mission Cap the Collector. Sonny dies in the finale.
Ricardo Diaz (voiced by Luis Guzmán) is the drug lord behind the ambush. At first Tommy works for him: The Chase, Phnom Penh ’86, The Fastest Boat and Supply & Demand. After Rub Out, Diaz’s mansion on Starfish Island becomes the Vercetti Estate.
Which characters give missions
| Character | Missions |
|---|---|
| Ken Rosenberg | The Party, Back Alley Brawl, Jury Fury, Riot |
| Colonel Cortez | Treacherous Swine, Mall Shootout, Guardian Angels, Sir, Yes Sir!, All Hands On Deck!; flees the city after the last one |
| Avery Carrington | Four Iron, Demolition Man, Two Bit Hit |
| Kent Paul | Death Row |
| Mitch Baker | Alloy Wheels of Steel, Messing With The Man, Hog Tied |
| Umberto Robina | Stunt Boat Challenge, Cannon Fodder, Naval Engagement, Trojan Voodoo |
| Auntie Poulet | Juju Scramble, Bombs Away!, Dirty Lickin’s |
| Phil Cassidy | Gun Runner, Boomshine Saigon |
| Earnest Kelly | Cap the Collector (Print Works) |
| Mr. Black | Road Kill, Waste the Wife, Autocide, Check Out at the Check In, Loose Ends (via payphones) |
Mercedes Cortez is the colonel’s daughter. Tommy looks after her, and later she acts in the film Steve Scott shoots for InterGlobal Studios.
Vice City gangs
GTABase and GTA Wiki give the same territories for the gangs. Leaders and story roles follow GTA Wiki and our missions page.
| Gang | Leader | Where | Story role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cubans | Umberto Robina | Little Havana | at war with the Haitians; Tommy helps them in Umberto’s missions |
| Haitians | Auntie Poulet | Little Haiti | rivals of the Cubans; Tommy does Auntie Poulet’s three missions for them |
| Vice City Bikers | Mitch Baker | Downtown | after Mitch’s missions they guard the Love Fist concert |
| Diaz’ Gang | Ricardo Diaz | the mansion on Starfish Island | gone after Rub Out, when Tommy takes the mansion |
| Forelli Crime Family | Sonny Forelli | Liberty City | its collectors shake down Tommy’s businesses in Cap the Collector |
| Streetwannabe’s | unnamed | North Point Mall, Prawn Island | a small gang Tommy takes Mitch’s bike back from in Hog Tied |
| Vercetti Crime Family | Tommy Vercetti | the estate on Starfish Island and Tommy’s business districts | appears after Rub Out and grows with Tommy’s empire |
Cameos and stars in smaller roles
There are stars in the supporting roles too. Dennis Hopper plays director Steve Scott, Lee Majors biker Mitch Baker, Debbie Harry the cab dispatcher and Jenna Jameson Candy Suxxx. The radio has its own stars: Kevin McKidd and Lawrence Taylor are heard on K-Chat, and Lazlow hosts V-Rock.
| Character | Who they are | Voice |
|---|---|---|
| Steve Scott | film director, shoots a movie for Tommy’s studio | Dennis Hopper |
| Candy Suxxx | adult film actress Tommy recruits in Recruitment Drive | Jenna Jameson |
| Kaufman Cabs dispatcher | the voice on the taxi radio | Debbie Harry |
| Jezz Torrent | Love Fist frontman, guest on K-Chat radio | Kevin McKidd |
| BJ Smith | former football player, guest on K-Chat | Lawrence Taylor |
| Lazlow | V-Rock radio host, plays himself | Lazlow Jones |
These roles appear only in the game credits (per the credits page on GTA Wiki); we found no independent confirmation:
| Character | Who they are | Voice |
|---|---|---|
| Victor Vance | Lance’s brother, killed in the ambush in the intro | Armando Riesco |
| Earnest Kelly | elderly “neighborhood boss” at the Print Works | George DiCenzo |
| Hilary King and Cam Jones | the Malibu Club bank heist crew | Charles Tucker, Greg Sims |
| Alex Shrub | the congressman from Martha’s Mug Shot | Chris Lucas |
How much voice work is in the game
According to figures Wikipedia cites from IGN, Vice City has about 8,000 lines of dialogue — four times as many as GTA III — and more than 90 minutes of cutscenes. The DJ and ad scripts for the radio were written by Dan Houser and Lazlow. Stations and their hosts are covered on the GTA Vice City radio stations page.
You can compare versions and prices on the GTA Trilogy – The Definitive Edition page, and everything about the game is in the GTA Vice City section.
GTA Vice City characters FAQ
Who voices Tommy Vercetti?
American actor Ray Liotta. Tommy is the main character of GTA Vice City.
Who voiced Lance Vance?
Philip Michael Thomas. Lance is Tommy’s partner, who betrays him near the end.
Who betrayed Tommy in Vice City?
Lance Vance. In the final mission, Keep Your Friends Close..., Tommy kills both him and Sonny Forelli.
Who voiced Ken Rosenberg?
William Fichtner. Some sites wrongly name a different actor, but the game credits list Fichtner.
Which stars voiced GTA Vice City?
Ray Liotta, Burt Reynolds, Dennis Hopper, Danny Trejo, Gary Busey, Tom Sizemore, Luis Guzmán, Robert Davi, Fairuza Balk, Lee Majors, Debbie Harry and others.
Who is Ricardo Diaz?
The drug lord behind the ambush on Tommy’s deal. Tommy kills him in the mission Rub Out. He is voiced by Luis Guzmán.
Who is Mr. Black in GTA Vice City?
An unseen client who calls payphones and hands out five assassinations, from Road Kill to Loose Ends. The game never reveals who he is. The missions are optional for the story but required for 100%.
What gangs are in GTA Vice City?
Umberto Robina’s Cubans in Little Havana, Auntie Poulet’s Haitians in Little Haiti, Mitch Baker’s bikers in Downtown, Diaz’ Gang, the Streetwannabe’s, plus the Forelli family from Liberty City and Tommy’s own gang.
Sources
- Official: Rockstar Games, Rockstar Newswire, Rockstar Support, Take-Two Interactive
- Databases and guides: GTABase, GTA Wiki, GTA BOOM, PowerPyx
- Press: GamesRadar, PC Gamer, IGN, VGC, Game Informer
Every fact is checked against official sources or at least two independent ones; player-sourced data is labelled in the text. Images are official Rockstar Games material. GTA Top is not affiliated with Rockstar Games or Take-Two Interactive.