Police Arrest Man With Knife Near Michael B. Jordan’s Brooklyn Film Set

Turning a New York street into the neon-soaked 1980s takes serious logistics. Trucks, lighting rigs and dozens of crew members spread across a Brooklyn film set can make a busy block feel like a world of its own. That atmosphere is part of what Universal is chasing as its period crime reboot shoots on location.

The studio’s ‘Miami Vice ’85‘ began production on October 12, with first-look images of Michael B. Jordan as Ricardo “Rico” Tubbs and Austin Butler as James “Sonny” Crockett released the same day. Joseph Kosinski directs from a script by Dan Gilroy, and the film is being shot for IMAX. It is inspired by the pilot episode and first season of the original TV series, and Danny Ramirez, Dominic Sessa and Walton Goggins round out the cast.

Late Friday night, that production made headlines for a very different reason. Police arrested a 23-year-old man near the Brooklyn location, and no one was injured. The man was charged with menacing and criminal possession of a weapon.

According to the NYPD, the man was arrested just after 11 p.m. on Friday, October 23, in the area of Avenue N and McDonald Avenue. Police said he displayed a knife during a verbal dispute with another man in the area. He was taken into custody without incident, and the knife was recovered.

A report from TMZ, citing police, described the scene differently. It said the man ran across the set with a butcher knife at about 11:00 p.m., disrupted filming, and pulled the knife from his sweatshirt as a staffer escorted him away. A video obtained by that outlet reportedly shows him being walked off set before an officer placed him in cuffs.

The gap between the 2 versions matters, and the charges remain allegations at this stage. Neither report said Jordan or Butler were on set at the time, and it was not immediately clear whether the suspect had retained an attorney. One outlet said the incident interrupted filming, though the production has not publicly detailed any schedule impact.

The shoot is only a few weeks old. Earlier this month, Jordan and Butler were spotted filming in Wayne, New Jersey, on a set dressed to resemble a 1980s shopping center. The production was filming along Bay Parkway and McDonald Avenue, near Washington Cemetery, when the arrest took place.

The project has been a long time coming. Kosinski, fresh off ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ and ‘F1’, said before the deals were finalized that he would be thrilled to land the pair, telling Variety, “If it ends up being those two, I’d be very lucky.” He also confirmed the story takes place in 1985, setting it apart from Michael Mann’s 2006 ‘Miami Vice’ film.

The cast has grown since then, with John Leguizamo, Andrew Schulz and others reportedly on board. Leguizamo is the only actor to appear in both the original series and the new film. Goggins has reportedly joined in an antagonist role linked to Leguizamo’s character.

Release plans have shifted along the way. The film was once dated for August 6, 2027, and it is now scheduled for May 19, 2028. That leaves plenty of runway for the rest of the shoot, which will keep using real streets and real neighborhoods.

Location filming always carries some risk, since productions share space with the public and rely on police support to keep sets secure. In this case, the quick response meant the situation ended without injury. For now, nothing suggests any lasting effect on the film’s schedule.

Fans are watching closely as the reboot takes shape, and the safety of crews working on busy city streets is a part of that conversation.

Have something to add? Let us know in the comments!