In the early 80s Brian De Palma angered many a film fan when he decided to produce a remake of the classic gangster movie Scarface, and though his film was seen as a bit of a dud upon release it’s since gone on to become a true cult classic, and appreciated for the masterpiece it was, but now Universal have decided to commission a new take on Scarface, and have just hired David Ayer to write its script.
There’s no denying that Ayer is a qualified scriptwriter, and has experience with the crime genre (having written both Training Day and Dark Blue), so it should be no surprise that he actively chased the Scarface gig, confirming himself that he “sought it out” and “went after it hard.”
Ayer has a rough idea of the themes he wants to present in the new Scarface; “I see it as the story of the American dream, with a character whose moral compass points in a different direction”; but still isn’t sure exactly where it will be set, or what form it will take as he believes that “there are enough opportunities in the real world today that provide an opportunity to do this right”; so while he’s still planning on bringing a level of “unapologetic violence” to the film and “a main character who scared the shit out of people”, it’ll be a long while before we see the next Tony Montana on screen.
Matt Wheeldon.
Source: Deadline.
