'Fallout' Star Walton Goggins Officially Trades the Wasteland for 'Miami Vice '85'

Walton Goggins is trading the post-apocalyptic West for the neon-soaked streets of 1980s Miami. The Fallout star has officially joined Miami Vice '85, Universal's new take on the classic crime series, where he will reportedly play a henchman working for the cartel kingpin played by John Leguizamo. According to Deadline, director Joseph Kosinski wanted Goggins for the role from the start — but the deal could only close once a scheduling conflict with Fallout season 3 was resolved.

It is a testament to how in-demand Goggins has become. His turn as Cooper Howard — better known as the Ghoul — in Prime Video's Fallout made him one of television's most magnetic performers, following standout runs in Justified, The Righteous Gemstones and The White Lotus. That Kosinski held the role open while the Fallout schedule was worked out says everything about how badly the production wanted him.

An ensemble built for the big screen

Goggins joins a cast that keeps getting stronger. Michael B. Jordan and Austin Butler lead as Ricardo Tubbs and Sonny Crockett, with Edi Gathegi, Danny Ramirez, Alden Ehrenreich, Camila Morrone, Whitney Peak and John Leguizamo rounding out the ensemble. Kosinski, the filmmaker behind Top Gun: Maverick, directs from a screenplay by Dan Gilroy, drawing inspiration from the original series' pilot while building an all-new story about glamour and corruption in mid-1980s Miami. The film will be shot for IMAX, with production expected to begin in November ahead of a May 19, 2028 theatrical release.

For Goggins, it is another villainous role on a resume full of them — and the kind of part he makes look easy. Few actors can turn a friendly conversation into something deeply uncomfortable without raising their voice, and his work as the Ghoul proved he can find the humor in a character without making him any less threatening. That should serve him well on the wrong side of Crockett and Tubbs.

Fallout keeps expanding, too

The scheduling puzzle that had to be solved is itself a sign of Fallout's momentum. Season 3 of the Prime Video hit is now in production, with Breaking Bad star Aaron Paul joining the cast in an undisclosed role. Beyond that, Goggins' calendar is packed: he will voice a three-eyed cat in Disney's animated feature Hexed this November, star opposite Chloë Grace Moretz in the action comedy Mister next year, and headline the action thriller Painter alongside Amber Midthunder. The Ghoul may be leaving the Wasteland temporarily — but Walton Goggins is not slowing down.