Al Capone was the real Scarface. The deadly Chicago gangster has been played onscreen by the likes of Robert De Niro, who nailed Capone’s capacity for sudden violence (see the video below). Now an actor known for his intensity is taking on the role—Tom Hardy.
The movie may begin shooting as soon as early April.
It’s titled Fonzo, and Irish blog Joe spotted a notice by the New Orleans Times-Picayune that filming begins on April 2 in Louisiana.
The MovieWeb synopsis makes it clear that filmmakers are coming at the Capone story from an original angle, using the strange end of Capone’s life (he died at 48 of dementia) as a jumping-off point:
[The movie centers] on Alfonse Capone, the ruthless businessman and bootlegger who ruled Chicago with an iron fist before being famously taken down by Eliot Ness. After nearly a decade of imprisonment, dementia rots his mind and his past becomes present as harrowing memories of his violent and brutal origins melt into his waking life.
That’s a very different look inside the mind of a man who has such a prominent position in crime history. Anyone who has seen Tom Hardy in a villainous role like Bane in The Dark Knight Rises has no doubt he’s an excellent choice for the role.
Fonzo doesn’t have a release date, but it sounds like it’s worth the wait.
h/t Joe