Don Johnson, who played Detective James “Sonny” Crockett on Miami Vice, recently shared some unforgettable moments from his time on the iconic show. During a recent interview with Remind Magazine, the 75-year-old actor shared how filming with his pet alligator, Elvis, became one of the most intense parts of the series.
Crockett’s unusual bond with his alligator on the sailboat brought a unique touch to the show, but working with Elvis was anything but smooth. Crockett was supposed to play it cool as a detective who juggled high-stakes investigations while maintaining a fast life. However, Elvis was an unpredictable alligator, and even Don was terrified.
Don Johnson had loads of respect for Elvis, the alligator in ‘Miami Vice’
Don admitted that he treated Elvis with great respect on set, but when asked to pet him, Elvis would snarl, sending his heart racing. Don was quite scared to approach his reptile cast mate, but he went beyond his fear to deliver a sterling performance, making Crockett and Elvis’ bond even more special.
Johnson acknowledged the alligator’s ancient power, noting that they had not evolved in millions of years. He even joked that Elvis was already a perfect creature that required no training because he was just impeccable.
How did Don Johnson film with an untrained alligator?
Filming with Elvis came with great risk, and the crew set up strict safety measures to make sure nothing went wrong. When they were not shooting, they taped the alligator’s mouth shut to keep him from attacking.
Once the cameras started rolling again, the mouth tape would come off, and Johnson had to be very careful getting close to Elvis again as he was one irritable alligator. Johnson credited the protective crew for keeping him safe enough to deliver a stellar show with Elvis.