John Leguizamo, an actor known for his work in theater and film, has been cast as the primary antagonist in an upcoming Universal Pictures production titled Miami Vice '85. According to reports, the role will see Leguizamo portray a cartel leader set in mid-1980s Miami, a period the studio describes as exploring the region's glamour and systemic corruption. The film, directed by Joseph Kosinski, is structured as a historical drama drawing inspiration from the original 1984–1985 television series, particularly its pilot episode and early story arcs involving a Colombian drug lord named Esteban Calderone.

In the series, Calderone was depicted as a powerful trafficker whose operations spanned multiple regions, including New York, Miami, and the Bahamas. His son, Orlando Calderone, was portrayed by Leguizamo in two episodes of the show, including a season finale and a standalone episode reminiscent of the film High Noon. While the original series was episodic, the pursuit of Calderone formed a central narrative thread during its first season, a storyline that may inform the film's structure.

The casting choice has drawn attention due to Leguizamo's past critiques of the series. In interviews, including one with Interview Magazine in 2016, he described his early reluctance to participate in television, calling it "nothing" compared to theater and expressing pride in his refusal to take on roles he deemed beneath his artistic standards. By 2014, in his one-man show Ghetto Klown, he referred to Miami Vice as "the Latin exploitation series of the '80s," reflecting on how Latino characters were often confined to narrow stereotypes such as drug dealers or gang leaders. He noted the limited range of roles available to him and contemporaries like Benicio Del Toro, Benjamin Bratt, Esai Morales, and Jimmy Smits, questioning why narratives centered so heavily on criminality when Latino communities contributed in broader ways.

The film's cast also includes Michael B. Jordan, Austin Butler, Alden Ehrenreich, Whitney Peak, Camila Morrone, and Danny Ramirez. Production is being led by Dylan Clark, known for his work on The Batman, alongside Kosinski and screenwriters Dan Gilroy and Eric Singer, who are adapting characters originally created by Anthony Yerkovich for the series. Michael Mann, who directed the 2006 remake of Miami Vice, is scheduled to attend a film festival screening of his director’s cut of that film later this year.

Filming for Miami Vice '85 is set to begin soon, with a planned theatrical release on May 19, 2028. The production will be shot for IMAX format, emphasizing visual scale and detail. While specific plot details remain limited, the film aims to reframe the cultural legacy of the original series through a historical lens, focusing on the intersection of law enforcement, organized crime, and regional identity in 1980s Miami.