Miami Vice: How Jamie Foxx Learned What A 'Dangerous Game' Going Undercover Was
Jamie Foxx has accrued many a notable credit in his time, but even some of the actor's most devoted fans may forget that he once starred in the 2006 film reboot of "Miami Vice." Indeed, Foxx inhabited the storied role of Ricardo Tubbs for this iteration of the buddy cop franchise. In the process, Foxx actually learned a valuable lesson about the realistic dangers of going undercover and interacting face-to-face with the criminal element.
In an interview with Cinema.com, Foxx spoke about a moment he experienced while filming "Miami Vice" that altered his perspective. "We did this undercover thing where we're supposed to be buying drugs from this guy, and somebody comes up on the side of the car and points a gun to the back of my head and says that's how easy it could go wrong," Foxx explained. "So it's a little bone chilling, you know, you think wow, you're in this world and gun play is so prevalent and so easy to happen. So it really gives you a sense, it was a plastic gun, but it really gives you a sense that if that were to happen, that your head would be blown off. So it's a dangerous game when you play an undercover agent."
Foxx has also been cognizant of real-life violence
"Miami Vice" may have opened Jamie Foxx's eyes to the very-real dangers of undercover operations and gun violence, but it's not the only time that the actor has commented on realistic depictions of these matters in fiction. In fact, Foxx shared some similar sentiments regarding another deeply graphic movie he was once a part of.
Right around the time of the 2012 mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, Quentin Tarantino's "Django Unchained" released into theaters. This R-rated flick has its fair share of crime and gun violence. While Foxx starred in the film, he was vocal about the potential downsides of depicting these elements on-screen, especially in the wake of the tragedy. "We cannot turn our back and say that violence in films or anything that we do doesn't have a sort of influence," Foxx said in a quote obtained by CBS News. "It does."
In recent years, Foxx has confirmed that he owns guns himself, but is also an outspoken supporter of legislation for stricter gun control in America. "We live in the most sophisticated country in the world, but yet we are primitive in Stone Age when it comes to gun control and gun safety..." the actor wrote in a 2022 Instagram post. "This doesn't happen in other parts of the world..."