Austin Butler Steps Into Crockett's Shoes in First 'Miami Vice 85' Set Photos

Production on Miami Vice '85 has moved from pre-production speculation into tangible reality, with the first photographs from the New Jersey set offering an early glimpse at what promises to be one of the more ambitious period crime films of the decade. The images confirm not only that Austin Butler is fully inhabiting the role of Detective James "Sonny" Crockett, but that the supporting cast is already taking shape in ways that weren't entirely anticipated.

Butler Brings the Pastels Back

For a generation raised on Michael Mann's original 1984 television series, the aesthetic of Miami Vice is inseparable from its costuming — linen suits, sockless loafers, and that particular sun-bleached color palette that seemed to define a certain strain of American cool. The first set photos, reported by Just Jared, show Butler dressed in a light blue shirt and white trousers while filming at Jerry's Liquor in Wayne, New Jersey, a location standing in for Miami circa the mid-1980s. The wardrobe choice is immediately evocative without feeling like parody, suggesting a production that understands the fine line between homage and imitation. Butler, who has been quietly preparing for this role for some time, appears at ease in the period-appropriate ensemble — a small but meaningful early indicator of how fully he may be committing to the character.

A Cast Taking Shape — With Surprises

Sharing the frame with Butler is Danny Ramirez, whose involvement had already been announced, lending the production a known quantity alongside its lead. More intriguing, however, is the presence of Dominic Sessa, the young actor who drew considerable attention for his work in Alexander Payne's The Holdovers. Sessa had not previously been confirmed as a cast member, making his appearance on set one of the more quietly significant revelations to emerge from these early location photographs. The combination of Butler's star power, Ramirez's recent genre credentials, and Sessa's critical-darling status suggests a deliberately layered ensemble rather than a simple star vehicle.

It's also worth noting, per the original source's tagging, that Walton Goggins is connected to the production — an actor whose chameleonic intensity would fit seamlessly into any story involving Miami's drug trade and institutional corruption.

The Creative Team Behind the Camera

The choice of Joseph Kosinski as director is one that rewards closer examination. Kosinski has demonstrated a facility with large-scale, technically demanding productions — Top Gun: Maverick and the upcoming Formula One film F1 both speak to his comfort with kinetic spectacle and period-adjacent atmosphere. Pairing him with screenwriter Dan Gilroy, whose credits include the unsettling media critique Nightcrawler and the narratively intricate Andor, points toward a film with genuine thematic ambitions beneath its genre surface. Gilroy's sensibility leans toward institutional corruption and moral compromise, which maps neatly onto a story set during Miami's cocaine boom.

The decision to shoot in IMAX is also telling. Mann himself was a pioneer of digital cinematography, famously shooting Miami Vice (2006) on high-definition video to achieve a particular textural rawness. Kosinski's IMAX approach suggests a different but equally deliberate visual philosophy — one that embraces grandeur rather than grit.

What the Period Setting Promises

The film will reportedly draw inspiration from the pilot episode and first season of the original series, grounding itself in the moment before Miami Vice became a cultural shorthand for excess. That's a smart creative constraint. Butler, who has been dedicated to the physical demands of the role and has spoken publicly about his approach to the project, seems well-positioned to inhabit a Crockett who exists before the mythology fully calcified around the character.

With a theatrical release set for May 19, 2028, Miami Vice '85 has considerable time to develop — but these first images make clear that the production is already asking the right questions about what it means to revisit an icon.