Francis McReary


 * "Francis" redirects here. For the airport in GTA III, see Francis International Airport, Shoreside Vale. For the airport in GTA IV, see Francis International Airport, Dukes. For other Character, see Francis "Frankie" Garone.

"There's no good and no evil... just shades of fucking grey."

- Francis McReary

Francis "Frankie" McReary (Irish: Proinsias Mac Ruairí) is a character in the Grand Theft Auto series who appears as a main character in Grand Theft Auto IV.

Francis is the corrupt Deputy Police Commissioner, and the second oldest member of the McReary Family. He worked at the Westminster Police Station.

History
Francis is the brother of Patrick McReary, Derrick McReary, and Gerald McReary. He is the second oldest brother of the McReary family. Francis is unsurprisingly the only McReary brother who wasn't involved in the Three Leaf Clover mission.

Background
Francis and his brothers grew up in an Irish Catholic home. He is looked down upon by his brothers, who consider him a hypocrite for his police career; Patrick McReary remarks that "Francis is just as crooked as we are — moreso"; Francis affords his brothers similar disdain for their open criminality. He initially wanted to become a priest, but as his brother Patrick recalls, he had to abandon that ambition after being caught cheating on his final test to be a priest; he also had a selfish tendency to take money from the donation plate as an altar boy.

Francis tells Niko that his philosophy to cleaning up the streets of Liberty City is "one percent at a time" — assassinate small-time crooks and drug dealers one by one, to "improve" the city without involving the legal system. This may be mere self-justification on Francis' part — the tasks he sets for Niko are overwhelmingly focused on covering up his own misdeeds. Francis is implied to have illicit tastes, which go unspecified but which may be related to drugs and/or prostitution, as he orders the assassination of a drug-dealing pimp who is implied to be personally inconveniencing him.

It seems he has the same philosophy as Frank Tenpenny, thinking if a necessary number of people do like he does, the community would improve.

Events of Grand Theft Auto IV
Francis first meets Niko Bellic during a publicity spot with Manny Escuela. Later in the game, he calls Niko and arranges a meeting at Castle Gardens, where he reveals that he knows of Niko's criminal activity in Liberty City; Niko agrees to work for Francis in exchange for his turning a blind eye to Niko's other crimes.

Francis first orders the death of a blackmailer who possesses incriminating photographs, and then the death of Tom Goldberg, a lawyer who has evidence against Francis. He has Niko kill a drug-dealer and pimp in the East Holland projects, and then the dealer's accomplice, who is threatening to talk to the police about McReary.

Blood Brothers
After Francis' brother Derrick returns from Ireland, Derrick intends to expose Francis' corruption out of spite, something Francis could not accept as he intends to become the Commissioner of the LCPD. He orders Niko to kill Derrick during a meeting he has arranged with his brother. Niko either chooses to follow Francis' orders, or goes against them and spares Derrick's life by killing Francis instead. Either choice will end Niko's career with Francis, although Niko can choose to exploit Francis' guilt in the future if he survives. Killing Derrick also allows the player to gain ability of using Francis to put down any wanted level against him for the duration of the story. He is buried at the Colony Island Cemetary.

Mission Appearances

 * GTA IV
 * Street Sweeper
 * Call and Collect (Boss)
 * Final Interview (Boss)
 * Holland Nights (Boss)
 * Lure (Boss)
 * Harboring a Grudge (Post-mission phone call)
 * Blood Brothers (Boss/Can be killed)
 * Undertaker (Only if spared in Blood Brothers)

Wanted level reduction
If Francis is spared in Blood Brothers, the player can call him and have him clear their Wanted level. Although this can be done multiple times, the wait required between calls is undetermined — calling too soon after the last successful call will merely redirect to Francis' answering machine. Once the player finishes the story missions, Francis' ability will not be available anymore because most contacts, him included, on Niko's cell phone are deleted at the end of the game.

Trivia

 * Francis McReary appears to be based on Hector Cruz, a character in the film "Entrapment" played by Will Patton. Both characters work for law enforcement and share the same moustache.
 * If Niko kills Francis, his gravestone in Colony Island reads: "Here Lies Francis McReary, Brave, Honest, Shot Dead." Derrick's gravestone will say the same thing if he is killed, but his grave will be in Steinway.
 * Francis drives a black Landstalker, seen in the beginning cutscene of Blood Brothers.
 * As Francis is an LCPD officer, he has no record on the LCPD police database.
 * Francis McReary also bears a slight resemblance to Inspector Walter Cobb from the 1995 movie Die Hard with a Vengeance.
 * If Niko kills Francis, in the mission I'll Take Her..., Gerald McReary says that he and Francis were never real close, but that "he'll miss him."
 * He appears to be very hypocritical through GTA IV; he speaks freqently of second chances or chances at redemption, but he orders Niko to kill Clarence Little because "He is guilty as sin."
 * Sometimes, if Niko starts getting chased by police with Packie, he will often shout "Look! Frankie's Boys!".
 * Francis can be seen on the homepage for Libertycitypolice.com.
 * In the beta, it was shown that Francis had blond hair.
 * In Blood Brothers, Niko can call Francis once to increase his payout, to $20,000, if he kills Derrick.
 * Francis bears a slight resemblance to his brother Gerald, as their hair and mustaches are somewhat similar.
 * Francis is the first of the McReary family for Niko to meet and work for.
 * Although his rank is given as "Deputy Police Commissioner" it is likely that he is in fact either the First Deputy Commissioner, of which there are many in the NY (and therefore likely the LC) Police Department or the Deputy Commissioner of operations. It is also quite possible that he is (or was originally intended to be) the Chief of Police since both Niko and the officer behind the desk in the cutscene for Final Interview refer to him as such. One thing to note is that in New York the Police Commissioner is a ceremonial post and the holder is elected by the mayor i.e. not necessarily a police officer, whereas the Chief is a serving member of the Department who has worked his way up through the ranks over time.

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