Don Johnson Shares Secret to Staying So Handsome at 74: 'Marry Right! A Bad Marriage Will Age You' (Exclusive)

The 'Rebel Ridge' and 'Doctor Odyssey' star reveals his secret to looking and feeling young at 74

Four decades after his iconic series Miami Vice debuted, Don Johnson is still having a moment.

The actor, 74, is currently starring in two consecutive projects: the hit Netflix film Rebel Ridge, and Hulu's new series Doctor Odyssey. He's looking as fit as he ever did. His secret?

"Marry right!" he tells PEOPLE with a laugh. "A bad marriage will age you."

Of course, the dad of six, who's been married to Kelley Phleger since 1999, says the only other way to look and feel young is to just keep moving.

Related: Don Johnson on 'Keys' to 25-Year Marriage with Kelley Phleger: 'Unspoken Trust and Kindness' (Exclusive)

"You have to exercise, and do it a lot," he says. "How do you think I got six kids?" He jokes, "That I know of, anyway!"

Johnson has had those celebrity looks, but for a period in the '80s, he also became a (reluctant) style star, when the pastel linen suit and loafers without socks look that he sported on Miami Vice suddenly became the defacto wardrobe for hip dudes everywhere.

In a 1985 PEOPLE cover story, he revealed that he didn't love all the Detective James "Sonny" Crockett carbon copies.

"Here's the only look I ever liked and felt individual in, and now every guy, his brother and his dog are wearing it," he said. (He also revealed his secret for maintaining a perpetual two-day stubble: "I shave with a sideburn trimmer.")

These days, Johnson doesn't care about clothes or stubble — he's just glad he's "still on the menu."

“My goal back then was to not be Sonny Crockett forever,” he says of trying to navigate the popularity of the hit show. “I had seen the peril of the actors who were too identifiable with their character. I felt like I had to separate myself from Sonny so people could eventually see me as other characters.”

Related: Don Johnson Says Being an '80s Heartthrob Was Dangerous: 'We Had to Have 24/7 Security' (Exclusive)

Of course, he saw plenty of ups and downs in the decades since Miami Vice ended in 1989, after five seasons.

“I’ve had career lulls where I wasn’t sure I would ever get a job again,” he says.

“I’ve always said you go through these stages as an actor: ‘Who’s Don Johnson?’ Then, ‘Get me Don Johnson!’ Then, ‘Get me a Don Johnson type!’ Then, ‘Get me a younger Don Johnson!’ And finally it’s back to ‘Who’s Don Johnson?’” again.”

He shrugs and laughs. “That’s just the way it goes.”

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