Almost nobody remembers that Liam Neeson actually had a role in Miami Vice way before he became famous. The actor played Sean Carroon, a member of Provos, the provisional wing of the Irish Republican Army. He appeared in the show’s opening episode of season three, titled “When Irish Eyes Are Crying”. The character eventually died at the end of the episode, after being shot by Gina Calabrese, one of the show’s main characters.
The character was a semi-psychopathic killer and died in a very fitting way by being shot after refusing Gina’s desperate pleads for him to disarm his weapon. Who could have predicted that the guy who played him would end up becoming the great Liam Neeson, one of the world’s most prominent actors?
Bruce McGill– After the show
Right after his role on Miami Vice, Bruce McGill found himself portraying Jack Dalton, a good friend of MacGyver's who always seems to get the two in trouble thanks to his love of get-rich-quick schemes. He is best known for acting in some of director Michael Mann's films, including The Insider, Ali, and Collateral. The actor is also a fantastic narrator and made various ads for the Republican Party during the 2016 presidential election.
Bruce McGill recently appeared in a 2019 drama film called The Best of Enemies alongside Sam Rockwell and Taraji P. Henson. He also appeared in a small-time film called Waiting Game, which landed him an award for Best Actor at the Pasadena International Film Festival. The actor's best role to date is arguable as former U.S. Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton in the seven Golden Globe Awards winner film, Lincoln.
David Strathairn As Marty Lang
Marty Lang appeared in the same episode as Hank Wheldon during season two of Miami Vice. He was a former Metro-Dade Vice detective and used to be Wheldon's partner. The two helped bring down the prominent drug dealer, Tony Arcaro, after three years of failed attempts.
It's believed that Marty Lang unlawfully killed Arcaro after failing to jail him in legal ways for so long. The character ended up being incarcerated for the crime and disappeared from Miami Vice, but not before leaving a big impression on the show's viewers.
David Strathairn– After the show
After his role in Miami Vice, actor David Strathairn continued to appear in many films and TV shows over the years. He managed to snag an Emmy and a Golden Globe nomination for his role as Dr. Carlock in 2010's biographical drama film Temple Grandin. Although Strathairn has a very large list of roles in films, he never really managed to find himself as a lead actor and was mostly typecast as a supporting actor.
David Strathairn is mostly recognized today for his role as CIA Deputy Director Noah Vosen in the 2007 film The Bourne Ultimatum and its sequel, 2012's The Bourne Legacy. He almost won a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture for playing the Secretary of State William H. Seward in Steven Spielberg's Lincoln, but ultimately lost to another actor.
Liam Neeson– After the show
Liam Neeson surpassed everyone's expectations, and went on to become not just one of Hollywood's most recognized stars, but was also ranked amongst the "100 Sexiest Stars in Film History" and "The Top 100 Movie Stars of All Time" by Empire magazine. Neeson has appeared in endless hit films, including an award-winning performance as Oskar Schindler in 1993's Schindler's List, a highly respected role in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, and even as Batman's villain, Ra's Al Guhl, in Batman Begins.
Liam Neeson also managed to star in his very own action film series and cemented himself as an excellent action hero in the Taken trilogy. His most prominent recent role was as Jesuit Cristóvão Ferreira in Martin Scorsese's 2016 epic historical drama film Silence.