Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Looking back on the DEATH OF AN ICON
Locally filmed series recounts Versace’s slaying in ’90s Miami Beach
Twenty years ago this summer, the fatal shooting of fashion designer Gianni Versace in Miami Beach stunned South Florida and the world.
In broad daylight on July 15, 1997, Andrew Cunanan, 27, gunned down the 50-year-old who was walking back to his Ocean Drive estate from the nearby News Cafe. Cunanan, suspected in the killing of at least four others, went on the lam. A national manhunt ensued. Eight days later, Cunanan was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound on a Miami Beach houseboat where he was hiding out. A swarm of TV helicopters captured the scene.
Now that story is being retold as part of a 10-episode FX network series filmed this month throughout Miami Beach, including Versace’s former home, now called The Villa Casa Casuarina. FX hasn’t announced a title yet, but the series has been referred to as “Versace: American Crime Story” and “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story.”
The series, expected to be broadcast in 2018, is based on the book “Vulgar Favors,” by Vanity Fair correspondent Maureen Orth. It stars Edgar Ramirez as Versace; Darren Criss as Cunanan; Penelope Cruz as Versace’s sister, Do-
natella; and singer Ricky Martin as Versace’s partner, Antonio D’Amico.
“His presence and the people he hung out with and the people he invited to his digs added a whole new luster to South Beach,” said Paul George, resident historian at the History-Miami Museum. “His party scene was exciting and decadent. It gave South Beach a whole additional aura.”
George recalled the shooting and the spotlight it put on South Florida. “It was shocking,” he said. “People were mortified. They were shocked nationally and internationally. … It was Gianni Versace, and it was one of the most celebrated celebrity crimes of that era, without exaggeration.”
During a recent day of filming, the production crew took Ocean Drive and Versace’s Mediterraneanstyle estate back in time. Extras wearing purple track suits and bright turquoise and pink retro shirts and shorts strolled and skated in front of the house, where a row of 1990s-era vehicles, from a Mazda Miata to a GMC Yukon, dotted the landscape.
In one scene, Ramirez, playing Versace, could be seen slowly stepping out onto a balcony, wearing a pink bathrobe. He looked around before heading back inside Casa Casuarina.
Crowds of tourists have been gathering along Ocean Drive’s seawall to watch and snap photos of the production.
“It’s fascinating, the whole life of Versace,” said Chicago tourist Javier Toledano, 32, as he watched the action unfold with his friend, Luis Martinez, 30. Though too young to remember the shooting 20 years ago, they said they later learned about Versace and his fashion legacy.
“We were going to the beach and we stumbled upon this and thought we’d check it out,” Martinez said.
“He was an icon of fashion … It’s sad,” added Toledano.
Paola Knudsen, who was visiting Miami Beach from her native Argentina with family, used her iPhone to snap pictures of the production between 11th and 12th streets on Ocean Drive.
“It’s another attraction of the many here in Miami for the tourists,” she said. “When the [series] comes out, we can say that we were there and we saw it.”
Nearby, Tammy Jonson, a tourist from Sweden, stood patiently under a palm tree with his smartphone in hand, waiting for another scene to be shot. He learned of the production by accident. While ordering breakfast with his family, “we saw all the old police cars and I said, ‘This can’t be now. They must be shooting a movie.’ ”
A waiter told him about the filming, and the family decided to take in the scene. “It’s something historic,” he said.
Filming also took place outside the Ocean Surf Hotel and the beachfront area in the 7500 block of Ocean Terrace in the North Beach section of Miami Beach.
Filming is expected to wrap up today at Casa Casuarina, now used as a luxury resort, restaurant and venue for private events.
”We are thrilled to have this significant production choose to film in beautiful Miami Beach, which Versace himself chose as his home and creative haven,” said Eva Silverstein, the city’s director of tourism, culture & economic development. “As a city, we are committed to supporting the film and production industry through a collaborative partnership — representing a thoughtful and respectful presence in our community, and showcasing the wonders of our distinct and vibrant city.”