By admin 
The new Miami Vice movie quickly got the greenlight Tuesday for a $1 million county subsidy if the production spends big in Miami-Dade County.
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With no questions asked, county commissioners approved the funding agreement for the feature film reviving an ‘80s franchise that glamorized Miami and made a star out of South Beach’s Art Deco vibe. The planned “Miami Vice ‘85” movie, starring Michael B. Jordan and Austin Butler as Dade County detectives Ricardo Tubbs and Sonny Crockett, is slated to come out in 2028.
The $1 million would come from the same pool of mostly property-tax dollars that fund police, jails, parks and transit. Miami-Dade recently cut back on bus service as a way to close revenue gaps in the transit budget, even with a 50-cent fare increase.
Miami Vice isn’t guaranteed the $1 million. Legislation by Commissioner Rene Garcia requires the production to spend at least $10 million in Miami-Dade, double the $5 million threshold for the county’s film subsidy program. Garcia has been a top critic of the administration of Mayor Daniella Levine Cava’s push to sign marketing deals with the maker of the Grand Theft Auto video game, which is releasing a new version set in a fictional Miami. Garcia and other commissioners complained Miami-Dade was cashing in on a game that glorifies street violence and crime in Miami.
Administration officials pointed to the expected Miami Vice subsidy as a counter to the critique, noting the county was probably going to pay for a movie depicting Miami violence rather than collecting money from a video game depicting Miami violence.
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After the unanimous vote approving the Miami Vice subsidy, Garcia rejected that criticism in an interview with the Miami Herald.
“One portrays Miami as a criminal haven,” Garcia said of the video game. “In the other one, the good guys win.”
This story was originally published October 20, 2026 at 9:28 AM with the headline “Miami Vice is back — and Miami-Dade County is ready to give the movie $1 million.”
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