‘Suicide Squad’ Helmer David Ayer In Talks To Direct ‘Scarface’ Remake
In news that would make James Franco’s white gangster character inSpring Breakerslose his mind, Universal Pictures' long-brewingScarfaceremake may have finally found its director.Suicide SquaddirectorDavid Ayeris in early talks to take over directing duties fromThe Equalizer’sAntoine Fuqua, whovacated the project earlier this yeardue to scheduling conflicts. But is Ayer a good fit for this project?
Why, yes – yes he is. This new version of the gangster thriller has shifted locations from Miami to Los Angeles, and Ayer knows the dirty, gritty streets of modern day L.A. as well as any other current filmmaker. He’s built a career on exploring them in movies likeTraining Day,The Fast and the Furious, andDark Blue(all of which he wrote or co-wrote), along withHarsh TimesandEnd of Watch(both of which he wrote and directed). EvenStreet Kingsand the upcoming Will Smith monster movieBright, which he directed but didn’t write, take place in Los Angeles.
Another reason he’s a solid fit: Ayer already has a history with this project, having written a draft of the screenplay. Since his draft, people likeThe Wolf of Wall StreetwriterTerence Winterand a little-known duo called theCoen Brothershave taken a crack at the script, so it’s unknown how much of his own material remains in there and if he’d want to restore some of it if he indeed signs on the dotted line to bring this movie to life.
Rogue One: A Star Wars StoryactorDiego Lunahad been attached to starfor a few months now, butVariety– who revealed the news of Ayer’s flirtation with directing – says they’re unsure if Luna is still involved at this stage. I hope he is, because the whole story this time is supposed to revolve around a Mexican immigrant who achieves a twisted version of the American dream by becoming a drug kingpin. Watching the often fresh-faced Luna undergo that transformation just might be enticing enough to overshadow the fact that Brian De Palma’s 1983 version of this story that starred Al Pacino is an ugly, overrated mess of a film. #shotsfired
In any case, Ayer directing aScarfaceremake sounds like a perfect marriage of material and filmmaker. Plus, it presumably keeps him away fromGotham City Sirens, a film I’d much rather see someone else –anyoneelse – step in to direct.
Scarfacealready has a release date scheduled: it hits theaters onAugust 10, 2018.
