It would appear that “Harry Potter” franchise director David Yates has a gangster itch he really wants to scratch. You might recall that the helmer has long been attached to the Al Capone movie “Cicero” over at Warner Bros., that has Tom Hardy to set to star. Earlier this year, development on that picture continued as Tom Shepherd was brought in write a new draft of the script, first penned by Walon Green (”The Wild Bunch,” “Sorcerer,” “The Brink’s Job”) and later rewritten by Yates. But could the director now be jumping ship to another studio for a remake based on the life of Al Capone?
Deadline reports that Yates is in final talks to tackle Universal‘s long brewing “Scarface” remake. The project, which has been kicking around now for a couple of years, has seen drafts from David Ayer (“Training Day,” “End Of Watch“) and Paul Attanasio (“Donnie Brasco,” “Quiz Show”) and is rumored to be set among the world of Mexican drug cartels. This version is being called a “reboot” rather than a “remake,” but we’ll leave that issue of semantics to others. Either way, it’s another tale of man who battles his way to the top, only to fall very, very hard.
No word yet on when this might roll, but likely sooner rather than later given that Yates’ schedule has opened ever since Warner Bros. shut down “Tarzan,” which was supposed to be his next picture. It’ll be a return to the more adult territory Yates worked in earlier in his career (“State Of Play,” “Sex Traffic“) and it’ll be interesting to see if this do-over can even come close to the pop culture phenomenon Brian De Palma‘s 1982 film has reached.
God forbid anyone in the world do a new movie…let's just keep remaking the old ones that are PERFECTLY FINE ON THEIR OWN. Is there anyone out there saying "weeeellll Al Pacino was ok, but we could really do with a better scarface." Cicero would have been a huge boon to the Chicago film industry. I hope he changes his mind.
Woah, but yeah – what about the Al Capone project "Cicero" starring Tom Hardy? I'm definitely open to see a David Yates-directed gangster film. People should remember he has a background in British social realism dramas, and is very educated in the Martin Scorsese film school. Also, the basic premise of the two classic "Scarface" films is so archetypical and Shakespearean that I'm not THAT offended, yet. The Howard Hawks and Brian De Palma films both tackled contemporary organized crime of their times (the prohibition and 80s latino cocaine boom in Miami), so there is a tradition to fulfill by exploring the world of the Mexican drug cartels.