The 1983 film Scarface, directed by Brian De Palma and starring Al Pacino, is a certified masterpiece. A gritty crime drama with timeless one-liners and fantastic performances, the film has rightly taken its place amongst the best crime odysseys of the last century. As a result, it should have been immune to remakes; its cultural zeitgeist alone should have been enough to keep the vultures at bay. However, for reasons unknown, the studio behind the film, Universal Pictures, has been quietly trying to develop some sort of Scarface remake/ follow-up to the acclaimed film for four decades now (with middling results).
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Armitage Trail’s 1929 novel Scarface first received the feature film treatment in 1938. That film starred Paul Muni and Ann Dvorak and was directed by Howard Hawks. The first adaptation came and went, but it was Oliver Stone and Brian De Palma who really thrust it into the stratosphere through their 1983 remake starring Al Pacino. In this version, Tony Montana is a Cuban refugee who manages to arrive in Miami as a result of the Mariel boatlift and begins a life of crime. Rising through the ranks, Montana swiftly eliminates his competition to become a drug kingpin with a huge empire. As former acquaintances turn into enemies, Montana finds the walls closing in, forcing him to make desperate choices that will have far-reaching consequences for his life.
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Surprisingly, Scarface was not well-received when it was first released. Bombarded with negative reviews that focused on its extreme violence and profanity, the film has since made a dramatic turnaround. Now considered one of the best crime dramas ever made, its cultural impact cannot be understated. Perhaps this is why Universal always sought to do some sort of follow-up to Scarface; they wanted to cash in on its cultural popularity.
When it became clear that Al Pacino and Brian De Palma would not return to do another one, the first concrete step that Universal took to expand the Scarface universe was to settle on a proposed sequel that would take the focus of the story far into the future. Titled ‘The Son of Tony’, the film would dive into Tony Montana’s son, even though the 1983 Scarface made no allusions to such a fact.
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It was not clear who the mother of this son was since Tony’s wife, Elvira (played by Michelle Pfeiffer), was confirmed to be infertile in the 1983 film. However, Brian De Palma was said to be involved, and hip-hop artist Cuban Link was supposed to headline the project. However, this plan never went anywhere, and Link would later blame its failure on rights issues that plagued the property. Once Universal became sure that a proper sequel to Scarface could never be made, they moved ahead with a remake that would update the property for the 21st century.
Scarface Remake
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Talks about a Scarface remake first surfaced around 2011 when Universal tapped David Yates (Harry Potter) to direct the film with David Ayer (Training Day, Suicide Squad) writing the screenplay. Yates, having just finished the final film in the Harry Potter saga, was in high demand across Tinseltown. As rumors quickly swirled that this might once again be a sequel to the 1983 film, the studio quickly came forward to denounce any such news, noting that this would be a standalone film that would take inspiration from both the 1932 Scarface and its 1983 remake. It was claimed that Universal was said to be in love with the script and was eager to begin production as soon as possible. However, by 2014, the project was dead in the water. Yates, having waited around for the project to materialize, moved on to Warner Bros, where he directed The Legend of Tarzan.
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Next, Chilean auteur Pablo Larrain was tapped to give the remake a go in 2014. Known for small-scale but moving dramas, Larrain wanted the film to be an original story set in modern-day Los Angeles that follows a Mexican immigrant's rise in the criminal underworld as he strives for the American Dream. Paul Attanasio was attached to the project as script writer, but some months later, he was replaced by Jonathan Herman. Next up was Antoine Fuqua’s turn as director, and he was on and off the project during a tumultuous two years. At one point, Fuqua even cast Diego Luna as the lead, but fate, it seems, had other plans.
Scarface Remake
The latest Scarface remake news broke in 2020 when it was announced that Suspira director Luca Guadagnino had onboarded as director. Guadagnino was no stranger to updating classic films for the new age (his Suspiria remake had earned significant critical acclaim), and the project was said to be using the Coen Brothers script written earlier. With the sequel receiving tax credits to shoot in California, it seemed that, finally, cameras would roll on the film. However, unseen forces once again stepped in to derail the whole thing, and Guadagnigo, finding out that he was being stonewalled, moved on to do other projects. The Scarface remake was dead once more.
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Scarface Remake
Thus, as it is now apparent, Universal keeps trying to make the new Scarface happen with a new creative team every few years or so. Scripts are written, directors are signed on, but the project never goes anywhere. Is someone high up in Universal continuously trying to kill the remake, or are there more obvious reasons at play? With Universal insisting on big-name directors who have multiple projects already lined up and work according to a specific vision, it is no surprise that the project keeps hitting a proverbial wall. It seems that Universal has a specific vision for the project, and no creative team has yet managed to tow the line according to that vision.
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Scarface Remake
Therefore, the Scarface remake, as we know, is dead. Until it comes to fruition, we all have the Brian De Palma/Al Pacino version to enjoy in the meantime.
