The Contract, the latest update for GTA Online, reveals what happened to the “heroes” of GTA 5 after the completion of the single player story.
GTA 5 now has over eight years under its belt, but hasn’t received a single single player release since its original release. Nevertheless, the story of the playable protagonists Franklin, Trevor and Michael has been continued – in the multiplayer mode of the game GTA Online.
What exactly became of the three heroes of Grand Theft Auto 5 is now revealed in the latest update The Contract. You can find all the information about the new story missions, weapons and cars in the following overview:
GTA Online: New update coming as early as next week – all info on The Contract
Table of Contents
How GTA Online continues the story of GTA 5
Simultaneously prequel and sequel: GTA Online partly takes place before, parallel to and after the storyline of GTA 5. Again and again there were overlaps and cross-references between single and multiplayer, for example by familiar characters returning or by referring to certain events of the story mode. There were plenty of contradictions as to when exactly what was supposed to have happened.
New update as a clear continuation: The Contract is now clearly a continuation of the events of GTA 5. The plot of the latest expansion takes place a few years after the end of the single-player campaign and now primarily continues the story of Franklin Clinton. But Trevor and Michael are also mentioned, which tells us what happened to the other two GTA 5 protagonists.
We already saw a first reunion with Franklin Clinton in the trailer for The Contract:
Which ending is canon?
Three possible endings: First of all, we should of course clarify which ending of GTA 5’s story is canon. In the story finale, after all, fans of the game have the choice of killing Trevor or Michael – or making common cause with both and facing Franklin’s death wish.
Death Wish is Trump: Even before the release of The Contract, there were clear hints in GTA Online that the third of the three possible endings of GTA 5 is canon – i.e. Franklin, Michael and Trevor all survive. For example, Ron repeatedly mentions Trevor, or the Cayo Perico Heist once again makes Trevor’s affair with Patricia Madrazo relevant.
The Diamond Casino Update also features Tao Cheng, the son of Wei Cheng, who falls victim to Michael’s murder plot in the C-ending. The shooting at the beach house in Los Santos is mentioned by Tao Cheng himself, which does not take place in the other two endings.
Last but not least, a few lines of dialogue from Lester also allude to the Death Wish ending as canon, while Michael’s son Jimmy also plays a role in the Diamond Casino update – implying that the DeSantas still reside in Los Santos. Official artwork from Rockstar Games is also understood to indicate that Michael, Trevor and Franklin survive the Death Wish ending together.
Franklin
Franklin as a family man and businessman: Of course, we learn the most about Franklin’s career after the end of GTA 5 in the course of The Contract. After all, as players we finance his agency, which is dedicated to solving the problems of famous personalities – such as Dr. Dre. In the course of this, we learn that he has invested his millions wisely and launched a legitimate career as a businessman.
In addition, The Contract reveals that Franklin has started a family: Franklin’s ex-girlfriend Tanisha from Story Mode eventually became Mrs. Clinton and they both have children together. This is not only mentioned in various dialogues; at Franklin’s house in the Open World, for example, there are also clues on the doorbell and number plates, while a children’s playground can be seen in the garden.
And of course Franklin still has to deal with his buddy Lamar, while the dog Chop continues to stand by him faithfully – even if he is no longer the youngest by now.
Michael
Michael in Hollywood: That Michael is still alive and kicking and continues to pursue his dream as a film producer is confirmed by Franklin himself in the course of The Contract. As soon as we start the VIP job, in the course of which we have to recover Dr. Dre’s stolen phone, we start a chase with golf carts and speed through the Los Santos film studio.
Franklin mentions that he knows one of the producers working there and hopes that he is not there at the moment. Later in the story of GTA 5, Michael pursues exactly such a career and fulfils a lifelong dream, which is why Franklin’s allusion is clear. By the way, we also meet Michael’s partner Solomon in GTA Online if we want to recover his stolen film props.
Trevor
Trevor does what Trevor does: The allusion to Trevor is even better hidden in The Contract: One of your assistants in the agency office reports someone trying to reach Franklin. However, the announcement that Franklin was not available at the moment was not taken too well by this someone and he threatened to relieve himself on the reception desk. If that doesn’t sound like Trevor?
Trevor, of course, has been a part of previous updates to GTA Online – such as the Series A Funding Heist. There’s even a hidden dialogue with Franklin where he addresses you about having worked with Trevor before.
What other references to Michael, Trevor and also Franklin’s career after the story ending of GTA 5 have you noticed? Did we forget anything? Let us know in the comments!
