Sony has reportedly dismissed Ghost of Yotei artist, allegedly due to a joke about Charlie Kirk

September 22, 2025 Update: Brian Fleming, the co-founder and leader at Sucker Punch Productions, has addressed claims that a top artist was dismissed after an inappropriate comment regarding the murder of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk. "The facts align," Fleming stated in an interview with Game File's Stephen Totilo, which took place on September 15, 2025, and was released on September 19, 2025.

Fleming confirmed, "Drew is no longer a part of our team." He emphasized that the studio takes a firm stance against joking about or celebrating someone's murder. "This is the ethos of our studio," he added.

Initial Report, September 17, 2025: Allegedly, a senior artist involved with Ghost of Yotei was terminated after joking about Charlie Kirk's assassination. According to Kotaku, Drew Harrison, an experienced character and texture artist at Sucker Punch Productions, was let go within a day of making a post on X about the assassination of conservative figure Charlie Kirk on September 10, 2025.

In a series of now-removed tweets, Harrison, who spent a decade with the company, mentioned a harassment campaign she endured, involving anonymous calls, after the post. Some X users, including Mark "Grummz" Kern, demanded the firing of Harrison and a boycott of Ghost of Yotei in a tweet.

Harrison announced via X on September 12 that she was dismissed. "If opposing fascism cost me my dream job of ten years, I'd do it again, and even stronger," she wrote. Sony confirmed to Kotaku that Harrison was no longer with Sucker Punch Productions.

The company's spokesperson revealed, "Drew Harrison is no longer employed at Sucker Punch Productions."

On September 16, 2025, Sucker Punch shared a new trailer for Ghost of Yotei on X, provoking a wave of boycott calls and numerous posts saying "RIP Charlie Kirk."

Other gaming companies like Square Enix, Warhammer/Game Workshop, Bethesda, and Activision Blizzard are similarly under social media pressure about posts concerning Kirk's death. In response, Elon Musk tagged Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella in a post on September 12, 2025, questioning, "What's going on here?"

That day, Microsoft issued a statement: "We're reviewing the views expressed by certain employees about recent events. We take such matters seriously. Celebrating violence isn't acceptable and does not reflect our corporate values."

GamesIndustry.biz has sought further comments from Sony regarding these events.