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Universal Pictures has officially set August 6, 2027, as the release date for Miami Vice, a big-screen reboot helmed by director Joseph Kosinski. The filmmaker, who scored huge box office success with Top Gun: Maverick and this year’s Formula One racing drama F1, will now turn his eye to the neon-lit streets of 1980s Miami.
The new film is described as an exploration of the “glamour and corruption of mid-80s Miami,” drawing direct inspiration from the pilot episode and first season of the original television series. That show, created by Anthony Yerkovich and executive produced by Michael Mann, wasn’t just a police drama—it was a cultural force. From 1984 to 1989, Miami Vice ran for five seasons on NBC, defining the look and sound of the era through its pastel suits, synth-driven soundtrack, and slick cinematography. Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas became household names as undercover detectives Sonny Crockett and Ricardo Tubbs, chasing drug traffickers and crime lords in South Florida.
Casting for Kosinski’s reboot is currently underway, with production expected to begin in 2026. The film will be shot for IMAX, a choice that suggests Universal and Kosinski want to capture Miami’s sun-soaked vistas and shadowy underworld in the most immersive way possible. The project is being produced by Dylan Clark (The Batman) alongside Kosinski, with a screenplay from Eric Warren Singer and Dan Gilroy. Both writers are known for their sharp, character-driven thrillers, making them a strong fit for a franchise built on style, grit, and intensity.
This isn’t the first time Miami Vice has made the leap to theaters. In 2006, Michael Mann directed a film adaptation starring Jamie Foxx and Colin Farrell. Despite high expectations, the movie was a commercial disappointment, earning $165 million worldwide against a reported $135 million budget. Kosinski’s version will mark the second attempt to reimagine the series for modern audiences, and Universal is betting on his recent track record of blockbuster filmmaking to deliver a hit.
Kosinski’s most recent project, F1, starring Brad Pitt as a retired Formula One driver, has already grossed over $620 million globally, making it the highest-grossing film of Pitt’s career and Apple Studios’ first major theatrical win. Coupled with the billion-dollar success of Top Gun: Maverick, Kosinski has cemented himself as one of Hollywood’s most bankable directors when it comes to large-scale, visually ambitious storytelling.
With its release locked for summer 2027, Miami Vice aims to bring the heat, style, and danger of one of television’s most influential shows back to the big screen. Whether it will capture the same lightning in a bottle that defined the original series remains to be seen—but under Kosinski’s direction, the stakes and the spectacle will be high.
