Cyberpunk 2077 creator CD Projekt Red would kindly like modders to stop making Keanu Reeves into a sex object. Following a fan mod that allowed players to have sex with Reeves’ character, Johnny Silverhand, the developer told PC Gamer that user-generated content cannot be “harmful towards others” — especially when it comes to mods. “In the case of model swaps, especially those that involve explicit situations, it can be perceived as such by the people who lent us their appearance for the purpose of creating characters in Cyberpunk 2077,” the developer said.
It’s worth noting that Reeves’ character does have an in-game sex scene, though it plays out from his perspective. As Johnny, the player has sex with a blonde woman who inexplicably dumps good liquor onto her white top to a backdrop of guitar riffs, while Johnny bounces her around.
Eurogamer first reported on the Nexus Mods files that swapped a sex worker “joytoy” character model for Reeves’ Johnny. In the mod, Johnny — who remains clothed — is now the sexualized character seen through the players’ eyes. It also uses the joytoy’s voice acting throughout the brief scene.
It’s typical for players to personalize their experience through mods, and the Cyberpunk community has been doing so since the game’s release. CD Projekt Red just released official modding tools. However, the mod — which has since been hidden by the creator on Nexus Mods — crosses that boundary.
“For the characters we’ve invented for the game, we broadly permit you to tweak the game at will and just have fun,” CD Projekt Red told PC Gamer. “When it comes to models of real people whom we’ve asked to participate in the game, we kindly ask you to refrain from using them in any situation that might be found offensive if you don’t have their explicit permission.”