Big car phones, pastel-colored costumes and era-specific pop music set to the adventures of its protagonists, Miami Vice remains a classic and a decade defining TV show. Set in Miami in the 80s, then a city plagued with poverty and crime, the series was so influential that it had a big hand in making Miami a tourist destination as we know and love today.
Miami Vice was a huge success in terms of viewership, but most importantly it became a cultural phenomenon, making the leading cast household names and everything they wore, said or drove has become iconic.
So, what is the hard-hitting ass kicking cast of Miami Vice doing today? Let’s find out together.
James “Sonny” Crockett - Don Johnson
Don Johnson wasn’t a famous face before landing his Golden Globe-winning role of Sonny in Miami Vice. Before the show, he had appeared in minor roles in Serge, The Rookies, Nashville 99, Big Hawaii, The American Girls, and Elvis and the Beauty Queen.
The series propelled him to fame and he has since had a successful career in TV and movies.
He appeared in yet another police drama, Nash Bridges, in the eponymous role. He has constantly worked in movies like Born Yesterday, Goodbye Lover, Machete, Django Unchained, and The Other Woman. Some of his last works were in the 2018 movies, Dragged Across Concrete and Book Club and has an upcoming movie, Knives Out and an upcoming series, Watchmen.
Ricardo “Rico” Tubbs - Philip Michael Thomas
Rico Tubbs, the sidekick of Sonny Crocket remains the most famous and the only leading role of Philip Michael Thomas to date. After the show, he joined Psychic Reader’s Network and became the spokesperson for Philip Michael Thomas International Psychic Network. He appeared in various television ads and infomercials. The network replaced Thomas with Miss Cleo and he later sued for breach of contract. He won $1.48 million and $780k in interest.
He reunited with Don Johnson for two episodes of Nash Bridges. He lent his voice to the game, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City as Lance Vance and reprised his role in its prequel, GTA: Vice City Stories. Thomas also tried his luck in music. He released an album, Living the Book of My Life in 1985 and sung many of his songs on Miami Vice. He produced music for fitness videos in 2001 and 2006.
Gina Navarro Calabrese - Saundra Santiago
Santiago’s best-known role remains Gina Navarro, Sonny’s brief love interest on ‘Miami Vice.’ After the show, she appeared in the CBS soap opera, Guiding Light, as crime boss Carmen Santos from 1999 to 2000 and from 2001 to 2003. In ‘The Sopranos,’ she played the recurring role of the twins, Jeannie and Joan Cusamano.
After Guiding Light, she appeared in recurring shows like One Life to Live, Law & Order, Person of Interest and Gang Related. Her last work was in 2016 in Stomping Grounds as Detective Maria Baez.
Lieutenant Martin "Marty" Castillo - Edward James Olmos
Olmos has had a very successful career after Miami Vice. He appeared in other successful works, Battlestar Galactica, Stand and Deliver, and Blade Runner series. He’s also appeared in shows like American Family, Dexter, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and Narcos.
Recently, he appeared in an episode of Mayans M.C. and voiced King Pescoro in a few episodes of Elena of Avalor. In 2019, he appeared in two movies, A Dog’s Way Home and Windows on the World.
Detective Trudy Joplin - Olivia Brown
After her famous role as Trudy Joplin in Miami Vice, Brown appeared in 7th Heaven as Patricia Hamilton, in addition to appearing as Vanessa Hargraves on Designing Women, and as Barbara Lee on Moesha. She last appeared in the 2017 movie, Our Dream Christmas. She has not been active much in acting since the 90s.
Who was your favorite character in Miami Vice?