These guys defined what sexy and cool was 
Since making his name as a stand-up comic, Jamie Foxx has enjoyed phenomenal success as both an actor and a singer. Early roles included Any Given Sunday and Ali before he hit the big-time in 2004 with the double whammy of Collateral and Ray. He took home the Best Actor Oscar for the latter and became the first African American to be nominated for two Oscars in the same year. Since then, he has combined acting in films such as Jarhead with a Grammy-nominated singing career.
What did you think of the original series and did any of the fashions influence your dress sense back then?
In America that was the thing. These guys defined what sexy and cool was. The music, the women... America moves a little slower as far as what we see on TV is concerned, so when you saw those guys handling guns and looking good it was really the first time. You saw all of this action and then Michael [Mann] put that music on top of it - it was the hit songs, the hit clothes, and everything about it was hot.
How comfortable were you with the weapons you were using by the end of the film? Were you proficient with them?
We did about two and a half months of training. We actually did more training than real police officers do as far as handling guns is concerned. I watched everyone shoot, including [my co-star] Naomie Harris, and she could draw down and really go. There's something about the temperament of a woman's hand because the way she was hitting her targets was amazing. But it was about getting comfortable with it so that it made it easier when we came to the action scenes. We knew everything that our weapons were supposed to do.
You get to drive some fantastic vehicles in the movie. What type of car do you own in real life?
Oh it's way different than my first car - I had a 72 Beetle that is far from the car I have now, a Lamborghini. But I'm not really a car person. I just like a car that looks good when I stand next to it.
How nervous do you get before opening big films such as this?
You want everybody to go and check this film out. You want people to go see it for more than one reason. When I approached Michael Mann about doing this film, when I was still very young in my Michael Mann school years, I said that I thought this would be a great opportunity to have a franchise and to bring his filmmaking to more than just the critical acclaim. He could open it up to people that were fans and give them a real good dose of Michael Mann working with a great cast. So of course you want to be successful because that's what this business is about - it's not about being a failure.
You've worked with Michael Mann on several occasions. What makes him such a unique filmmaker?
What makes him unique is the critical acclaim. If you look at any of his movies you see Oscar nominations. When we did Collateral, there was so much going on that year that it got kind of overshadowed. But with his movie making, what he does and what he brings to it, people want to come to Michael Mann school. I've been lucky enough to be a graduate and I've been back to get my Masters. But you take on all of what he does so that when you go to other projects you're so prepared and so far beyond what other projects hold for you. It really helps you as far as your career is concerned.
Are you working with him again?
We're doing a movie called Kingdom. His prot茅g茅, Peter Berg, is shooting it [Michael Mann has co-written the script and serves as producer] and we're working on that right now. We have the spirit of Michael with us, but we don't have as many takes.
Miami Vice is released in UK cinemas on Friday 4th August 2006.
