The long-rumored Scarface reboot has officially been placed on the fast track over at Universal, no thanks to the appointment of Joel and Ethan Coen, and it seems the studio is wasting no time in its search for a director.
Deadline is reporting today that David Ayer, director of Fury, Suicide Squad and Netflix's upcoming fantasy flick Bright, has entered talks to take point at the helm. Negotiations are ongoing, but this revelation means Ayer is now the first filmmaker to be linked with the project ever since Antoine Fuqua departed due to issues with scheduling. But there was some good news to counter the disappointment of losing the Training Day director: Rogue One's Diego Luna had climbed aboard to headline.
Luna is still involved in Universal's long-gestating redo, thank the heavens, and assuming David Ayer and the Powers That Be at Universal reach some form of agreement over the coming weeks, we fully expect the studio to begin casting the net in search of new recruits. Brian De Palma's 1983 crime thriller is naturally still fresh in everyone's memory, but Scarface stretches back further still – all the way back to 1932, when Howard Hawks and Richard Rosson crafted an engrossing gangster flick. Word is that Universal plans to relocate the famous immigrant story to Los Angeles, though there's still nothing to report when it comes to an actual production start date.
After years spent collecting dust on Universal's proverbial shelf, Scarface is beginning to show tangible signs of life. To date, Diego Luna has climbed aboard to star, with the Coen brothers attached to pen a screenplay. David Ayer is circling, too, but it remains to be seen whether the Gotham City Sirens director can free up space on his busy calendar. Stay tuned for more.