Between two rumors about Grand Theft Auto VIthe community is passionate about another hot topic: who should be the protagonist of Red Dead Redemption 3 if Rockstar Games decides to launch a new episode of its cult western saga. After years of debate around Sadie, Dutch and Landon Ricketts, one name is emerging more and more clearly.
On Reddit as in the specialized press, players are converging on the same main character for Red Dead Redemption 3: Charles Smith. To the point that many are already talking about him as the ideal hero of the next Red Dead, capable of finally getting everyone to agree on the identity of the future protagonist.
Red Dead Redemption 3: why is the choice of the protagonist so talked about?
Red Dead Redemption And Red Dead Redemption 2 built their legend on two memorable heroes, John Marston And Arthur Morganwhose narrative arcs already seem perfectly completed. For some fans, disturbing this balance would be risky. As one player on Reddit, quoted by Gamingbible, sums it up, “there should be no RDR3. Red Dead Redemption is already a completely finished story.
The French press has often highlighted other avenues for the protagonist of Red Dead Redemption 3as Sadie Adler as the main heroine or a prequel centered on a young Dutch and the Blackwater affair. Problem is, these proposals strongly divide the community, between those who believe Sadie’s arc is already over and those who fear desecrating Dutch by placing him in the foreground.
Charles Smith, the protagonist of Red Dead Redemption 3 who makes players agree?
In this hubbub, Charles Smith emerges as the most consensual candidate for the role of main character of Red Dead Redemption 3. Rockstar officially describes him as follows: “A relatively recent recruit to the gang, Charles is quiet and reserved but extremely competent in everything he does and virtually unbeatable in combat. A decent, honest man who also proves deadly.” Everything is already there for a credible hero.
In a thread relayed by Gamingbible, Redditor KronusTempus decides without hesitation: “RDR3 with Charles as the protagonist would be incredible”. Another fan adds that he is “a total badass”, while a third judges that “Charles, as the main character, would make a great outlaw story”. Rarely a secondary character RDR2 will have generated such agreement among the players.
Morally upright but experienced in violence, black mixed race and Native American rejected by society, Charles carries within him all the themes dear to license Red Dead : marginality, systemic violence, impossible quest for peace. His departure for Canada at the end of Red Dead Redemption 2 Plus leaves a perfect open door for a new “redemption” arc.
Red Dead Redemption 3 with Charles Smith: when could the game be released and in what form?
Officially, Rockstar Games only talks about Grand Theft Auto VIexpected on November 19, 2026 on PS5 and Xbox Series Red Dead Redemption 2 would have started around the release of GTA V in 2013 to end in 2018. By reproducing this cycle, a new opus of the type Red Dead Redemption 3 would not arrive before 2031, at best.
In the meantime, fans are already writing the game in their heads. Some, like Redditor Fluffy Cheese, dream of a prequel centered on Charles “before RDR2ending with his arrival in the gang”. Others, like Ice-Berg-Slim, judge that he “would make the most sense as the hero of a prequel” as he would be “cool to play”. Another section of the community prefers to imagine a direct sequel, following his new life in Canada, with gameplay more oriented towards survival and hunting in snowy settings.
That Rockstar opts for a real Red Dead Redemption 3 or for a spin off with a new subtitle, one thing is clear from the current discussions: for many players, the best bet for the next protagonist is now Charles Smith.