The Heat Is On: Danny Ramirez Joins Michael B. Jordan and Austin Butler in “Miami Vice ’85”
Joseph Kosinski, the director behind two recent supercharged blockbusters, Top Gun: Maverick and F1, seems like a pretty ideal fit to take us back to the mean streets of Miami in the mid-80s. Now, Kosinski has added another piece to the puzzle: Danny Ramirez. The talented actor joins his upcoming adaptation of the iconic 1980s crime series that starred Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas and was produced by none other than Michael Mann. Mann adapted his own feature film version of Miami Vice in 2006, yet he ditched the ’80s Miami vibe of neon and pastels for a gritty modern crime procedural. What will Kosinski do with his own spin on the iconic crime saga, with Michael B. Jordan as Ricardo Tubbs and Austin Butler as James ‘Sonny’ Crockett in the lead roles?
Deadline reported that Ramirez has joined the cast, along with Jordan and Butler, and that it also includes Alden Ehrenreich, Camila Morrone, and Whitney Peak. Ramirez recently finished production on Todd Haynes’ De Noche, which also stars Pedro Pascal, and Baton, which he wrote and directed. He’ll also reprise his role as Joaquin Torres/Falcon in Avengers: Doomsday this December 18.
The Miami ’85 script comes from two topflight scribes, Dan Gilroy (Nightcrawler, Andor) and Kosinski’s longtime collaborator, Eric Warren Singer (Top Gun: Maverick, American Hustle). Kosinski’s also re-teaming with his Maverick cinematographer, Claudio Miranda, and production designer, Jeremy Hindle.
So far, we know Miami Vice ’85 will hew, at least in spirit, closer to the original series, with Crockett and Tubbs going undercover to infiltrate and dismantle South Florida’s criminal syndicates. It’s reportedly inspired by the pilot of the iconic Universal Television series, which immediately immersed viewers in a glamorous, dangerous, only-in-Miami world. That pilot, the 1984 episode “Brother’s Keeper,” features Crockett and Tubbs driving a black Ferrari Daytona Spyder through the neon-lit streets of Miami, set to Phil Collins’ “In the Air Tonight.” It was, without hyperbole, a groundbreaking moment in television. It seems Kosinski has set himself the goal of giving movie audiences a similar experience.
Miami ’85 is slated to go into production this year, with a release date set for May 19, 2028.
Featured image: L-r: PARIS, FRANCE – MARCH 11: Danny Ramirez attends the Saint Laurent Womenswear Fall/Winter 2025-2026 show as part of Paris Fashion Week at on March 11, 2025 in Paris, France. (Photo by Marc Piasecki/WireImage); Los Angeles, CA – March 15, 2026: Michael B. Jordan attends The Vanity Fair Oscar party held at the LACMA’s new David Geffen Galleries in Los Angeles, CA, Sunday, March 15, 2026. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times); HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA – NOVEMBER 16: Austin Butler attends the 16th Governors Awards at The Ray Dolby Ballroom on November 16, 2025 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/WireImage).
