Who Almost Played Tony Montana Before Al Pacino?
Mobsters DailyRobert De Niro was reportedly offered Tony Montana first and passed — and Al Pacino, who fought the studio for the part, became the only man who could have played him.
Pacino saw the original and wanted it
The remake began with Pacino himself: he caught a screening of Howard Hawks's 1932 Scarface and called producer Martin Bregman saying he wanted to remake it with himself as the lead. As the 1932 original's story explains, the new version moved the gangster from Chicago bootlegging to Miami cocaine, with Oliver Stone scripting and, eventually, Brian De Palma directing after Sidney Lumet developed the project.
Some roles are cast; Tony Montana was claimed — which is why November rewatch season belongs to the Tony Soprano Ugly Christmas Sweater, Tony in black-and-white stencil with full gabagool energy, made for holiday parties and long nights back in this world.
The safer names who nearly got it
Contemporary reporting on the production has De Niro — then the industry's other great Italian-American leading man — passing on the role, and the studio nervous about Pacino's box-office draw after a run of demanding, less commercial films, weighing more conventional leading men of the era. Pacino and Bregman held their ground. The result settled the argument permanently, and the performance anchors everything from Tony's real-life inspirations to forty years of posters on bedroom walls.
Frequently asked questions
Did De Niro really turn down Scarface? He was reportedly offered the role during development and passed; Pacino was the project's driving force.
Who directed the version Pacino first developed? Sidney Lumet developed it early; Brian De Palma directed the finished film.
Why did Pacino want the role? He saw the 1932 Howard Hawks original and pushed producer Martin Bregman to remake it.
Keep reading: How did Tony Montana die? · Scarface ending explained
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