GTA 5's Leonora Johnson Mystery Explained

Summary

The story of Leonora Johnson in Grand Theft Auto 5 is truly disturbing, evoking more disgust than the primary villains' actions.
Strangers and Freaks missions in Grand Theft Auto 5 are usually an amusing and engaging way to extend gameplay and explore the game's world, though this one is far from upbeat.
The mystery of Leonora Johnson's murder in Grand Theft Auto 5 is chilling, with a famous director named Peter Dreyfuss committing a horrific crime motivated by sadistic cruelty. Thankfully, Franklin can seek justice by confronting and potentially killing Dreyfuss.

The story of Leonora Johnson in Grand Theft Auto 5 is possibly the most disturbing plotline to be found in the game. Even though it doesn't tie into the overarching story of the game at all, it may evoke more disgust from the player than any of the primary villains' actions. Players do admittedly have to go fairly far out of their way in Grand Theft Auto 5 in order to get all the pieces of the story, so there is a time investment involved. However, the payoff is the chance to solve one of Vinewood's biggest crimes.

There are a lot of side missions in Grand Theft Auto 5 that the player can tackle when they aren't handling the main story. The most prominent branch of these side missions is probably the Strangers and Freaks missions. These are handed out by various characters that the player can encounter across Los Santos, and each of GTA 5's three protagonists has their own set of Strangers and Freaks missions, often with several installments. It helps that some of these missions include some of the game's more amusing character interactions as well. Overall, they're a good way to stretch Grand Theft Auto 5's runtime, though one mystery Franklin can solve is particularly haunting.

The Mystery of Leonora Johnson is One of Grand Theft Auto 5's More Chilling Tales

Franklin confronting Peter Dreyfuss in Grand Theft Auto 5

The events surrounding Leonora Johnson are one of Grand Theft Auto 5's many mysteries, but one that the players are able to solve on their own. Leonora Johnson was a young actress in Vinewood during the early 1970s, long before the events of the game itself. She did not have an especially long career, only being active for a few years and appearing in a small selection of films. However, she was considered to be an impressive talent, with her performances highly praised. However, just as soon as she arrived on the scene, she wound up disappearing without a trace before being murdered.

The details of Leonora's murder are found in a confession letter that Grand Theft Auto 5's Franklin has to collect, since it was torn to pieces and scattered across the city. Once all 50 pieces have been obtained, the sickening details become clear. Leonora had been kidnapped by a famous director named Peter Dreyfuss, who would go on to torture her extensively before killing her. Dreyfuss insists that the reason he did so was for his art, although that is an obvious lie. The brutality of the crime combined with his taunting of her family after the fact shows that his motivation was nothing more than sadistic cruelty.

Peter Dreyfuss' crimes are so pointless and shocking that even the criminal protagonists of Grand Theft Auto would be horrified. With the letter in hand, Franklin can confront Dreyfuss about what he has done, to which the man immediately cowers and flees. His self-rightous claims and pointless proclamations throughout the chase do nothing to stem Franklin's anger towards him, and he can gun the killer down quite easily. Franklin's icy quote after the deed only solidifies his justified loathing toward Dreyfuss. Although the mission is completed regardless of whether Dreyfuss lives or dies, the game heavily implies that his death is canon.

While the murder of Leonora Johnson and its associated quest can be missed completely, Dreyfuss is one of Grand Theft Auto's vilest villains despite his lack of relevance. He committed one of the franchise's most horrific crimes for seemingly no reason, and has a disgustingly smug attitude combined with his lack of remorse. The case was high-profile enough to be a major media sensation in-game, wrapped up by some news articles written after the mission's completion. Leonora Johnson's death is one of Grand Theft Auto 5's more disturbing stories, but at least Franklin can provide some small justice in the end.