Universal’s remake of Scarface is plowing along, though it’s been six months since we heard it was a high priority. Now we’re hearing that they’ve picked their director, and if word about “final talks” is accurate, they’ve landed perhaps the most sought-after director in Hollywood… David Yates.
The man responsible for the illustrious back half of the Harry Potter franchise, Yates has been on a lot of shortlists, associated with a number of projects, and has probably seen as many open doors as any director… ever, really. The guy is great though, and knocked four straight Potter films out of the park, increasing their sophistication in concert with the books. He’s a good man for playing in established playgrounds.
The scoop comes from Deadline, who doesn’t mention anything about David Ayers, the driver of this remake for the last several years. They DO mention a new draft that has pleased the studio, without specifying if the Mexican Cartel angle is still in play.
With a director aboard we should be getting a nice “Push It To The Limit” pre-production montage anytime now, with plenty of names coming out as a result.