Sony fires Ghost of Yotei artist after posts joking about Charlie Kirk killing

Image via Sucker Punch Productions/Sony Interactive Entertainment.

Sony Interactive Entertainment subsidiary Sucker Punch Productions appears to have fired senior texture artist Drew Harrison over posts made on Bluesky that joked about the September 17 killing of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk.

In a statement to Kotaku, a Sony spokesperson confirmed that Harrison is no longer employed at Ghost of Yotei developer Sucker Punch Productions. This statement follows a number of now-deleted posts from Harrison where she stated the following: “If standing up against fascism is what cost me my dream job I held for 10 years, I would do it again 100x stronger.” Harrison declined to comment when reached by Game Developer.

Harrison had previously posted that individuals from social media were contacting her employer and attempting to get her fired, and that she’d received a barrage of anonymous calls that seemed to come from an ongoing harassment campaign. Her Bluesky profile now appears to have been deleted. 

In her original post, she made a comparison between Kirk’s (then-unidentified) killer and Luigi Mangione, the 27-year-old who is accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December 2024. “I hope the shooter’s name is Mario so that Luigi knows his bro got his back,” she posted. The joke references the fact that Mangione bears the same name as the popular Nintendo character. This coincidence has fueled jokes and memes over the last 10 months.

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Conservatives seek firings for negative comments about Kirk

The circumstances of Sony’s alleged firing of Harrison go beyond a potentially inappropriate joke, with developers and studios suddenly navigating a coordinated right-wing campaign pressuring employers to fire or discipline anyone joking about Kirk’s death or criticizing his work.

Harrison is not the only developer spotlighted by a growing far-right campaign targeting individuals who spoke negatively about Kirk after his killing. In a post on X, Activision Blizzard parent company Microsoft stated it was investigating posts by “a small subset of our employees regarding recent events.” 

“Comments celebrating violence against anyone are unacceptable and do not align with our values,” it continued. This post was issued after site owner Elon Musk tagged Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella in a tweet that linked to a list of Blizzard Entertainment employees supposedly “trashing” Kirk. A Microsoft spokesperson informed Game Developer that the company had “no other updates” on the status of these employees at this time and referred us back to its initial statement.

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Outlets such as NPR and Wired have noted that individuals targeted by this campaign are facing waves of death threats, partly under the auspices that jokes or criticism of Kirk amount to threats of violence. This framing may have factored into the firing of Harrison. 

Epstein Becker Green attorney Nancy Gunzenhauser Popper explained to Game Developer that concern for employee safety is often “paramount” at large companies. “Employee safety is paramount, so any statement—whether among colleagues talking over coffee or on a public social media page—that threatens violence may pose risks to the safety of employees and potentially the general public, depending on the nature of the business,” she explained.

It’s unknown if Harrison was given any opportunity clarify her posts to Sony HR, or if she was given a warning and a chance to remove the post. “Most employment relationships are at-will, so there’s no obligation to provide notice or a warning for disciplinary matter,” said Susan Gross Sholinksy, another attorney with Epstein Becker Green. “On the other hand, if there is a specific definition of ’cause’ in an employment agreement or a collective bargaining agreement, that may impact the ability to terminate (either immediately or otherwise) based on a post.” 

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She advised employers who find themselves in Sony’s position to consider their past practices for responding to controversial social media posts by employees, as uneven treatment may open employers to discrimination claims. Developers and their employers should also be aware that different states (such as New York) have different laws protecting employees for being disciplined in off-duty conduct. 

The reported firing of Harrison and other private individuals commenting on the killing of Kirk is also drawling legal scrutiny of a different sort. Some government officials have publicly suggested they might take take action against those making negative comments about Kirk—like Harrison and other developers.

This is despite the US Supreme Court ruling in 1987 that inappropriate comments about attempted assassinations are protected speech under the First Amendment of the Constitution. 

Game Developer has reached out to Sony and Microsoft for comment and will update this story when a response is issued.

Update 9/16: This story has been updated to correctly spell the surname of Nancy Gunzenhauser Popper and with updated comment from Microsoft.

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