Franklin Clinton

Updated 28 October 2026 · Fan site. Not affiliated with Rockstar Games or Take-Two Interactive.

Franklin Clinton is one of the three playable protagonists of Grand Theft Auto V (2013). A young repo man from South Los Santos, he befriends retired robber Michael De Santa and joins his heist crew. He returned in GTA Online's The Contract update in December 2021, running a celebrity fixer agency. Shawn Fonteno voices him.

Who is Franklin in GTA V?

Franklin Clinton is the youngest of the three leads in Grand Theft Auto V. The GTA Wiki says he was born in South Los Santos in 1988. He never knew his father, and his mother died when he was a boy. He grew up with his grandparents and later shared a house with his aunt Denise.

At the start of the game, Franklin and his best friend Lamar Davis work for Simeon Yetarian, a crooked car dealer. Simeon sells cars to people who cannot afford them, and Franklin and Lamar repossess them when the buyers fall behind. Franklin wants more than street life, but he is not sure how to get it.

Story

Simeon sends Franklin to take back a car from the son of Michael De Santa. Michael catches him in the act, and an odd friendship follows. Michael becomes something like a mentor. He soon recruits Franklin for a jewellery store robbery to pay off a debt.

Franklin then becomes part of a crew with Michael, the hacker Lester Crest and Michael's volatile old partner Trevor Philips. As the money grows, he also keeps getting dragged back to the old neighbourhood, where he has to save Lamar from a rival gangster, Harold "Stretch" Joseph.

Franklin is often caught between his two older partners. He sees Michael's lies and Trevor's violence up close.

What choice does Franklin make at the end of GTA V?

The final decision belongs to Franklin. Under pressure from FIB agents Steve Haines and Dave Norton, he has to decide what to do about his two partners. The player can pick one of three outcomes.

What happened to Franklin in GTA Online?

Franklin returned as the star of GTA Online: The Contract, a free story update released on 15 December 2021. Game Informer reported that it takes place a few years after GTA V. Franklin now runs F. Clinton and Partner, a "celebrity solutions agency" that fixes problems for rich Vinewood clients, with the player as his partner. Lamar introduces the two.

The agency's big client is Dr. Dre, who has lost a phone holding unreleased music. According to the GTA Wiki, the update also shows that Franklin married his former girlfriend Tanisha and has children. He has since appeared in further GTA Online updates, including Short Trips and A Safehouse in the Hills.

Who voices Franklin Clinton?

Shawn Fonteno voices Franklin and performed most of his scenes in motion capture. The GTA Wiki notes that he is the older cousin of Young Maylay, who voiced Carl "CJ" Johnson in San Andreas. Franklin's special ability slows time while driving.

Reception

Wikipedia notes that reviews of GTA V's characters focused mostly on Trevor. Lamar, Franklin's friend, won Giant Bomb's Best New Character award. Franklin's 2021 return gave him a second life as a lead in GTA Online.