The world's changed a lot since Seán McLoughlin, better known to 31 million subscribers as Jacksepticeye, began making YouTube videos. He started uploading in 2012, in what many people consider to be the platform's "golden age" when vlogging, video game playthroughs and comedy escapism were all the rage. Like many in the content creation space, he's been branching out in recent years, taking more acting jobs and getting involved in film production.
BBC Newsbeat caught up with McLoughlin to talk about his new role, his work on bringing one of his favourite video games to the big screen and why he misses the "whimsical" days of the internet. McLoughlin got famous playing video games, and these days there's a good chance you'll see - or hear - him in one. After a role in the 2025 superhero adventure Dispatch, McLoughlin's got a new role in Hitman, the successful "assassination simulator" from Danish studio IO Interactive.
He plays controversial content creator Finn Colton, known as Finnvictus. Although the fictional character shares McLoughlin's likeness and voice, he says the "manosphere-adjacent influencer" is not based on him. As the name of the game suggests, players aren't there to collab with him.
He's one of the celebrity "elusive targets" Hitman's developers occasionally place in the game to encourage returning fans. "If you love me it'll be funny to play and you'll get to kill me in different ways," says McLoughlin. "If you hate me maybe that's even more fun to play." It's not the first time McLoughlin's worked with IO - he appeared, briefly, in their James Bond game 007: First Light earlier this year.
He'd hoped to watch other streamers react to the blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo, but says many of his friends missed it. "This time you're forced to interact with me," he says, even if that does involve thinking of imaginative ways to kill him off. Earlier this year, McLoughlin was also unveiled as a producer on an animated movie version of Bloodborne, one of the highest-rated video games of all time.
Some parts of its passionate fan base reacted negatively to the announcement, questioning the YouTuber's credentials. McLoughlin reassured them he's a huge fan of the games and has a tattoo of a Hunter's Mark - one of the game's key items - to prove it. He's described himself as a "vibe-checker" and sees it as his responsibility to make sure the adaptation is done properly.
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