After turning Top Gun: Maverick into one of the highest-grossing films of all time with $718.7 million domestically and $785.3 million internationally, Joseph Kosinski is now charging toward another iconic property. The filmmaker who reignited blockbuster spectacle with Top Gun: Maverick is set to helm the next Miami Vice chapter starring Michael B. Jordan and Austin Butler. And with anticipation already surging around the project, the film has now been officially confirmed under the title Miami Vice ’85.

Oscar winner Michael B. Jordan will star as Ricardo “Rico” Tubbs, while Oscar nominee Austin Butler will step up as James “Sonny” Crockett in Miami Vice ’85, which races toward its August 6, 2027, release. And long before the casting turned official, director Kosinski had made clear the duo sat firmly atop his wishlist. Speaking to Variety, the filmmaker praised Jordan as a star he had long hoped to work with, while hailing Butler as a rising force whose bold choices continue to command Hollywood attention. Kosinski added that landing both stars would make him very lucky.

“Michael is someone I’ve admired for a long time, [and] always wanted to work with him. Austin, I think, is proving himself as someone to watch. Again, I’ve just have really admired his choices,” Kosinski told Variety.

Miami Vice ’85 will plunge into the glamour, and danger of mid-80s Miami while drawing from the pilot episode and first season of the landmark series that once reshaped culture and set the style of everything from fashion to filmmaking. Dan Gilroy penned the script using characters created by Anthony Yerkovich, while Eric Warren Singer crafted an earlier draft.

As Miami Vice ’85 waits in the wings, the original Miami Vice long ruled crime-drama royalty.

The original Miami Vice once ruled crime drama TV

Long before Miami Vice ’85 began stirring fresh heat, the original Miami Vice had already become one of television's defining shows as one of the 1980s’ defining sensations. Premiering in 1984, the series followed undercover detectives Sonny Crockett and Rico Tubbs through Miami’s neon-soaked underworld, blending high-stakes crime with sleek visuals, designer fashion, and chart-dominating music. Its second season reached to No. 9 in the Nielsen ratings, while the soundtrack ruled the Billboard 200 for 11 weeks, proving the show was far more than a weekly crime drama.

More than two decades later, Michael Mann reignited the franchise with 2006’s Miami Vice, starring Colin Farrell as Crockett and Jamie Foxx as Tubbs. The film took a darker, more realistic approach, for a darker, grittier pulse centred on deep-cover operations and raw realism. Though it received mixed reviews, the movie earned $164.2 million worldwide against a reported $135–150 million budget before later rising into cult-favourite territory for its atmosphere and bold digital style.

With Michael B. Jordan and Austin Butler now preparing to steer the next chapter, Miami Vice ’85 appears poised to chase the franchise’s thunder once again.

Are you excited to watch Michael B. Jordan bring fresh fire to Miami Vice ’85? Let us know in the comments.

Written by

Lisa Roy

Edited by

Itti Mahajan