Michael De Santa, also known as Townley is one of the three protagonists in GTA 5 alongside Trevor Philips and Franklin Clinton. Michael De Santa, formerly known as Michael Townley, started his criminal life as a young adult. He had a tough upbringing due to his abusive alcoholic father, who left him at a young age. His mother eventually left as well, leading him to a life of crime. He mentions he had already been imprisoned twice, before the age of twenty. In his first robbery, he managed to steal $10,000 from a small business after which he only got better and saw himself turn into a heist leader.
He then met Trevor Philips while he was escorting some cargo across the border. They met in a messy situation where they worked together and got out of it, soon making them partners in crime. Michael met Amanda at a strip club a few years later. They dated for a few months and got married. They had two children, Tracey and Jimmy.
A chain of drastic events took place with FIB agent Dave Norton who had made a deal with Michael to give him and his family a new identity in exchange for a monthly 5-figure payment. The plan went sideways which led to Michael Townley faking his death and moving to Los Santos with his family under the name Michael De Santa. Soon, his wife spent all of his money and he was forced to get back into the world of crime, leading him to the events of GTA 5.
| Name | Michael De Santa |
| Aliases | Michael Townley(Birth Name) Mike Mikey Mr. DS Marky De Santos Mr. De Santo Michael Townley De Santa Zolag/Zondar |
| Voice Actor | Ned Luke |
| DOB (Age) | 1968 |
| Gender | Male |
| Height | 6’2 (1.88m) |
| Status | Alive |
| Nationality | American |
| Family | Amanda De Santa (Wife) Jimmy De Santa (Son) Tracey De Santa (Daughter) |
| Home | Portola Drive, Rockford Hills, Los Santos |
| Businesses | Bank robber (Formerly), Film producer |
| Affiliations | Trevor Philips Franklin Clinton Lester Crest Dave Norton |
| Weapons | Player’s Choice |
| Phone/Email ID | 3285550108/[email protected] |
| Appearance(s) | GTA 5 GTA 5 Online |
Michael was born sometime around 1968 and his upbringing had not been great. His father was an abusive alcoholic who left him at a young age. He was told many stories by his mother of why his dad left, not being sure about whether he skipped town, got hit by a train or joined the Navy. Soon, his mother abandoned him as well, leaving him all alone. He was good at sports in high school, even making it to the local newspaper, but injuries and a bad temper made him realise that it wasn’t for him.
Michael began a life of crime as a young individual. Even before the age of twenty, Michael had already been imprisoned twice. He learnt a handful of skills in prison including the use of a tattoo gun. His first robbery was the amount of $10,000 from a small business in 1988. He soon saw himself transform into an expert marksman and efficient heist leader. He met a guy named Lester Crest who went on to assist him in his heists and other crimes.
In 1993, Michael came across a man named Trevor Philips in a very odd situation while he was escorting cargo across the border. Trevor Philips was at the scene waiting for contact from his unknown employer when he saw not one but two dust trails coming up towards him. Michael exited the first vehicle while the older civilian from the second vehicle tried to explain to Trevor that he had been carjacked by Michael. While Michael tried to escape on foot, Trevor shot a flare gun into the eye of the civilian, killing him in a gruesome way. Michael and Trevor both threw up due to the stench of the dead burning body. They disposed of the body and got away. Noticing how well they worked with each other, Michael soon brought Trevor to work with him as his partner in crime. They were always on the run from the law and often had to leave town after completing a job.
Michael met a girl named Amanda who was a stripper. They started a romantic relationship after a flirty exchange. Using the money from his crimes he got Amanda breast implants to help her with stripping and prostitution. Soon, Michael found himself running his own prostitution racket. After a few months of dating, Michael and Amanda got married and had two children, Tracey and Jimmy. A man like Michael, now with a family, started questioning his criminal life.
Trevor came across a crook named Brad Snider and introduced him to Michael. They worked together for a bit but never got along and did not trust each other. Soon, Brad wanted to cut Michael off and work only with Trevor, but Trevor being loyal to Michael did not give in and refused. The trio committed robberies for quite some time all along the mid-west.
In 2004, Michael met Dave Norton of the FIB. Dave was a corrupt agent. Fearing the safety of his family, Michael made a deal with Dave to get rid of Trevor and Brad and move to a new location with brand new identities for himself and his family. He was to pay Dave a five-figure monthly payment. Michael informed Dave of their planned robbery in Ludendorff where Michael would pretend to be shot by Dave while actually killing Trevor and arresting Brad, being in fear of Trevor coming after him if he got to know about the plan. The plan would give Michael a new start to a life with his family, and Dave a career boost for taking down the “Most wanted man in America”.
The plan went south after Trevor murdered a guard who held Michael at gunpoint. This led to them being chased down by a dozen cops during which their driver was shot. Later, while escaping the cops and avoiding a roadblock, their car was hit by a train at a railway crossing almost ruining the plan completely. Brad was then shot and killed when he walked in front of Trevor while Dave took a shot at him. Michael too pretended to be shot and asked Trevor to leave without him. Trevor managed to escape the cops barely with his life and went into hiding.
Michael Townley was declared dead and the body of Brad was buried in his grave. Michael assumed that Trevor must’ve got himself killed but did not know for a fact if that was true. Along with his family, Michael relocated to Los Santos under the new surname “De Santa” which was a long-term alias of his.
Nine years after a peaceful life away from crime, Michael finds himself in a situation that may lead him to get back into the business. Jimmy De Santa, Michael’s son, buys a car from an Armenian Car dealer, Simeon Yetarian. Along with his employee Franklin Clinton, fraudulent Simeon tries to repossess the car, sending Franklin to steal it from the De Santa residence. Franklin successfully steals it but to his bad luck, Michael was hidden in the backseat of the car. Michael instructs Franklin to drive back to the car dealership at gunpoint. He tells him to drive through the front window of the dealership and Franklin does so. Michael makes Franklin leave the scene and threatens Simeon that things wouldn’t turn out good for him if he messed with his family again.
After a while Michael is home and takes a drink to the poolside while he listens to some music to get away from a heated argument between Tracey and Amanda. Shortly, he is joined by Franklin who took his earlier offer to have a drink with him. Michael is now on his way with Franklin to a bar nearby where he gets a call from his son Jimmy. Jimmy says he tried to sell Michael’s yacht to some “buyers” but the buyers hijacked the boat with Jimmy still on it. Michael with Franklin in the car chases down the hijackers and together they both rescue Jimmy. Michael is impressed by Franklin and tells him to visit again.
When Michael returns home, he walks in on his wife sleeping with her tennis coach who escapes out the window in just his underwear. Michael and Franklin chase down the man in a truck and reach a stilt house in Vinewood hills. Michael instructs Franklin to hook up the truck to the winch around the supports of the house's deck. Michael uses the truck's power causing the majority of the deck to collapse down the hill. On the way back Michael receives a call from the tennis coach who informs him that the house did not belong to him but to the mistress of Martin Madrazo, the leader of a Mexican cartel. Madrazo sends his men after Michael and Franklin. They manage to defend themselves against the attackers, but in a short while, Martin Madrazo himself arrives at the De Santa residence. Madrazo beats Michael up with a baseball bat and tells him to pay for the damages in the sum of $2,500,000. Knowing he does not possess that much money, Michael finds himself thinking about how he is going to have to get into the criminal world once again and soon contacts Lester.
After a short chain of dramatic events with his children, Michael and Lester get in touch and Lester agrees to help Michael pull off a heist in return for a favor. Michael helps Lester assassinate the CEO of social media page Lifeinvader, and in return, Lester and his crew along with Michael and Franklin successfully pull off the heist. He pays off Martin Madrazo and keeps a small cut for himself and Franklin. Trevor, who is still alive, gets a glimpse of the heist over the news and figures that it is possible that Michael was still alive. He sends his friend Wade to find out more and learns that somebody matching Michael’s description is living in Los Santos. Trevor sets out to find the man himself.
Trevor arrives at the De Santa residence in the middle of an argument between him and Amanda, leaving them shocked. At that moment Jimmy reveals that Tracy is auditioning for the show Fame or Shame hosted by Lazlow Jones. They arrive at the scene to see Tracey seductively dancing while Jones begins to do a sexual pose behind her. Michael and Trevor chase down Jones and humiliate him.
Michael is soon contacted by Dave Norton who could also be affected by the actions of Michael which were being broadcasted on the news. Norton asks Michael to do a few tasks for him to keep him safe in the FIB and in return he would cover up Michael’s mess. Michael’s first task is to locate a terrorist whom the IAA have declared dead. Michael and his crew manage to kidnap Ferdinand Kerimov and are later called to a warehouse for further instructions. Michael is then contacted by Norton’s superior Steve Haines who instructs him to work with Trevor and Franklin to take down Azerbaijani terrorist Tahir Javan. They torture Kerimov for information on Tahir Javan and assassinate him.
Michael’s family leaves him due to his “poor behavior”, leaving him in peace. Trevor contacts Michael and Franklin to take part in a new heist. They steal some unknown cargo from a mercenary group Merryweather Security, but soon decide to return it back because it could put a big target on their backs. Trevor, not being happy with this, agrees after a little convincing from Michael.
The FIB get in touch with Michael for a new heist of which the funds are to be delivered to Devin Weston, a billionaire with many FIB agents on his payroll. He offers Michael a partnership with Solomon Richards in hopes that it'll help his investment in Richard’s studios be more fruitful. Weston also sends Trevor and Franklin to steal expensive cars for his collection.
Michael and Trevor are contacted by Madrazo again. Trevor sees that Madrazo is ill-treating his wife and kidnaps her as he soon develops feelings for her. Michael and Trevor are now back in hiding from Madrazo and his people. During this time Trevor and Michael plan to steal from Merryweather again- this time, from a cargo plane. He manages to escape it with a thin margin as the plane is shot down over the water. Trevor again proposes that they now rob a train, which they successfully do, bringing them in the possession of an ancient artifact. Michael proposes they use it as a peace offering to calm things down with Madrazo. Trevor agrees as Michael talks about pulling off the heist of their dreams, the Union Depository. Patricia is then returned home.
Michael comes back to his house in Los Santos where he is shortly joined by Trevor who comes up with a plan to break Brad out of prison. Michael lets it slip that Brad was actually dead. Trevor rushes off to where Michael was supposedly buried and digs up the grave to find Brad’s body. The two pull out their guns on each other and are soon ambushed by the triads who are there to take revenge against Trevor. They kidnap Michael assuming he is Trevor’s lover and leave after a shootout. While Michael is held hostage, Franklin and Trevor do one final job for Devin Weston who does not pay them as promised. Franklin gets to know the location of the triads and rescues Michael with the help of Lester, killing many of the gang members.
Michael is again contacted by Dave Norton who has one final assignment for him. He tells him to break into the FIB headquarters and steal some files that will prevent Haines and Norton’s recent corrupt work from being exposed. Michael begins planning the heist when he hears that Weston is not releasing the film Michael and Solomon produced so as to collect the insurance money on the failed production of the film. Infuriated by this, Michael steals the film which leads to an accidental death of Weston’s lawyer.
Michael returns the film to Solomon who arranges a premiere so that it cannot be further tampered with. Michael and Franklin manage to pull off the FIB headquarters raid, but are then confronted by the Merryweather mercenaries, the IAA and Haines himself. They manage to make it out alive with Trevor’s help and now Michael and Trevor decide to go ahead with the Union Depository heist even though there is some tension between them. Michael then helps Franklin rescue his friend Lamar who had been kidnapped by a rival gang.
At the movie premiere, Weston shows up and tells Michael that the Merryweather mercenaries have been hired by him to kill his family. His son is able to defend them against the attackers and Michael now begins to plan his revenge against Weston. However he, Trevor, Franklin and Lester must first pull off the Union Depository heist. The job turns out to be a success even after intervention by the Merryweather mercenaries and the Los Santos Police Department. When Franklin returns home he finds Weston waiting for him, who tells him that he must kill Michael. Now he is left with three options.
Option 3 is the canonical ending to the game, however option 1 and 2 can also be chosen.
In GTA online, Franklin Clinton mentions Michael De Santa as being one of the producers at Richards Majestic Studios. Michael De Santa is now working as an executive producer for Solomon Richard.
She was a stripper at a strip club where she met Michael. They started dating, had two children and soon got married. She was caught cheating on Michael with her tennis coach. They later had many arguments which eventually led her to leave Michael along with the children.
Jimmy is Michael’s son. The pair seemed to have a loving relationship when Jimmy was younger, but as he grew up, Jimmy began to hate his father and didn’t enjoy spending time with him anymore. Jimmy got his dad into trouble multiple times, causing him to get back into the criminal world.
Tracey is Michael’s Daughter. She did not want to be close to him and always did the opposite of what she was told. Tracey’s actions also got Michael into fights with people while he tried to protect her. She did not like her dad interfering in what she did.
Trevor Philips and Michael met in an odd situation. They disposed of the body of a man Trevor killed by shooting a flare into his eye. They threw up as they saw the flare still burning inside his head as they disposed of his body in a lake. In 2004, Michael made a deal with Dave Norton to start a new life which included getting rid of Trevor. Norton was supposed to shoot Trevor but ended up shooting Brad and Trevor escaped, leaving behind Michael and Brad, assuming Michael had died. They met nine years later when Trevor suspected that Michael was alive when seeing something on the news, after which he went out to Los Santos to confirm it was him. They got back together to pull off heists. This eventually led them to a final showdown where they almost killed each other.
Franklin met Michael while stealing a car from the De Santa residence. After losing his job at Premium Deluxe Motorsport, Franklin went to meet Michael to look for possibilities of a job. Franklin and Michael carried out many jobs and heists together with Trevor and Lester as well. In the end, Franklin was told to kill Michael by Devin Weston. If the player chooses the third option, he does not kill him or Trevor and they take down their enemies together. If Franklin decides to kill Trevor, then Michael and Franklin remain friends but have a stained relationship.
Michael and Lester haven’t had a very direct relationship. They were great at pulling off heists together as a team and with Lester’s crew. Lester seemed to know a lot about Michael’s robberies but they were very neutral towards each other. Michael is often seen standing up for Lester against others like Trevor.
Dave Norton helped Michael by giving him a deal in exchange for a five figure monthly payment. The deal was to give Michael and his family a new identity and to relocate them to Los Santos. Norton and Michael teamed up multiple times to help save Norton from getting into trouble with the FIB. They had each other’s backs most of the time.
Solomon Richards and Michael got to know each other through Devin Weston. Michael is a big fan of Solomon’s productions. He is given a chance by Solomon to work with him on a movie named “Meltdown” as associate producer. This was probably Michael’s dream come true and he worked sincerely, assisting Solomon in his film productions at Richard’s Majestic Studios.
Steve Haines and Michael met when Michael was given the task of extracting the terrorist Ferdinand Kerimov. Steve Haines blamed Michael, Franklin and Trevor for ruining his career, however he only instructed Franklin to kill Trevor and spared Michael. If Franklin had killed Trevor, Haines would make sure Weston left Michael alone.
Devin and Michael meet during a meeting with Steve Haines. Devin offers Michael an offer for producing a film after a heist. Devin and Michael however, do not get along well, when Michael refuses to cancel the release of Meltdown while Weston wanted to make a profit out of it in the form of insurance money. After Michael retrieved the film and accidentally got Weston’s lawyer killed, Weston sent the Merryweather men to kill Michael’s family. Michael was successful in saving his family and this left Michael furious and wanting to take revenge against Devin Weston. This personal war leads to Devin instructing Franklin to kill Michael. If Franklin chooses to team up with Michael and Trevor, they manage to kidnap Devin and throw him down a cliff into the ocean, killing him.
These are the crimes committed by the character Michael De Santa as the storyline progresses in GTA 5.
A. Michael could possibly be based on Tony Soprano, a fictional character and antihero protagonist from the HBO series, The Sopranos.
A. During the events of GTA 5, Michael was either 45 or 48 as his tombstone read “Born in 1965” although Trevor and his other accomplices mention that he was 45 years old.
A. Michael became a film producer at the end of GTA 5, so he is still alive. However, he dies in one of the alternate endings of the game.
A. Michael De Santa is rumored to be coming soon to GTA Online.
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