Miss Cleo Auntie Poulet GTA
Miss Cleo and Auntie Poulet, both played by Youree Harris. Psychic Readers Network / Rockstar Games

Rockstar Games is being sued by the estate of a late TV psychic over the alleged likeness to a character created for its PS2 classic Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, which was first released 15 years ago.

TMZ reports that the Psychic Readers Network has filed a lawsuit in which it's claimed Rockstar used the likeness and Jamaican accent of TV personality Miss Cleo, of whom it owns the rights, for the character of Auntie Poulet.

On television Miss Cleo was played by Youree Harris, who, as the suit notes, also voiced Auntie Poulet. However, the network claims Rockstar made more than $500 million "exploiting" the Miss Cleo persona.

Auntie Poulet was leader of Vice City's Haitian gang and gives missions to protagonist Tommy Vercetti that will help her take on a rival Cuban gang.

She convinces him to take the missions, despite his ties to the Cubans, through the use of mind-altering potions.

Rockstar Games responded to the lawsuit, telling TMZ: "These claims are entirely meritless and completely ridiculous. We will vigorously defend ourselves with regard to this matter."

Harris died last year at the age of 53 following a battle with colon cancer.

The big question hanging over the suit is why is the Psychic Readers Network suing 15 years after the game's release? The suit claims it's because Rockstar continues to make money from re-releases of the game on mobile and through the PS2 Classics program on PS4.

However, it doesn't seem as though the lawsuit will get very far before it's thrown out.

In 2014 actor Lindsay Lohan sued Rockstar over the alleged use of her likeness for a character in Grand Theft Auto 5, released the year prior. It took two years, but in 2016 the suit was thrown out by a judge.

Vice City was released a year after Rockstar's game-changing Grand Theft Auto 3, and was followed two years later by San Andreas. It was these games that made the open world crime series a cultural phenomenon, with sequels following in 2008 and 2014.

Below are videos of Auntie Poulet in GTA Vice City, as well as a video of Miss Cleo on television.

Grand Theft Auto Rockstar Games