The veteran actor is set to play the villain in the upcoming ‘Miami Vice ’85.’
ByWill Lavin
September 18, 2026
Key Takeaways
- John Leguizamo has signed on as the main villain, reportedly a cartel boss, in Joseph Kosinski’s Miami Vice ’85 for Universal.
- Austin Butler plays Sonny Crockett and Michael B. Jordan plays Rico Tubbs, the undercover vice detectives dismantling South Florida’s criminal enterprises.
- The film also stars Alden Ehrenreich, Whitney Peak, Camila Morrone and Danny Ramirez, with production starting in November in New York and Miami for an Imax release dated May 19, 2028.
- Leguizamo previously appeared in multiple episodes of the original 1980s NBC series, and speculation suggests he could be playing the cartel figure Calderone.
John Leguizamo is heading back to Miami, this time as the man fictional cops Crockett and Tubbs will be trying to apprehend.
According to Deadline, the Romeo + Juliet actor has signed on as the main villain of Miami Vice ’85, Joseph Kosinski’s crime thriller starring Michael B. Jordan and Austin Butler.
Butler will take on the role of James “Sonny” Crockett, while Jordan will star as Ricardo Tubbs, the vice detectives out of Miami-Dade’s organized crime bureau who go undercover to dismantle southern Florida’s criminal enterprises. Alden Ehrenreich, Whitney Peak, Camila Morrone and Danny Ramirez will co-star.
Kosinski’s version is an all-new take of the classic TV show, rather than a straight remake, inspired by the pilot and first season of the 1984-90 series and digging into the glamour and corruption of mid-1980s Miami.
Which villain Leguizamo is playing remains under wraps, with speculation pointing to Calderone, the cartel figure who tormented the detectives in the original show’s early episodes. That question stays open until cameras roll in November.
Kosinski, who made Top Gun: Maverick and F1, will be working from a script written by Dan Gilroy built on characters created by Anthony Yerkovich. Dylan Clark will produce through Dylan Clark Productions alongside Kosinski.
Production is set to begin in November with shoots in New York and Miami, and the film is being captured for Imax. Universal has it dated for May 19, 2028.
The casting closes a loop that opened four decades ago for Leuizamo, who turned up in multiple episodes of the original NBC series in the 1980s, near the very start of his career.
It also extends a pretty impressive run he’s been on as of late. He played the blind, loyal Eumaeus opposite Matt Damon’s Odysseus in The Odyssey, which finished as the highest-grossing release in Universal’s history taking $1.68 billion worldwide to date.
