Ángel Salazar, ‘Scarface’ star, dead at 68
American actor Ángel Salazar, best known for performances in Carlito’s Way and Scarface, has died aged 68.
Salazar, who was also a comedian, made his first film appearance in 1979 with a tiny role in Boulevard Nights which quickly led to more similar work in an archetypal rogue role. However, 1983’s Scarface, which starred Al Pacino, was Salazar’s first major performance of any note, with him portraying the character, Chi Chi, a display that became synonymous with his career.
Over the next decade, Salazar continued to secure small roles in Hollywood productions, including 1988’s Punchline with Sally Field and Tom Cruise. During this time, the actor also popped up in Cameron Crowe’s The Wild Life and slasher movie, Maniac Cop 2.
His final significant role was in Carlito’s Way in 1993 as Walberto. However, although Salazar continued to act, the movies that he was involved in during his later years left much less of a considerable impact on the world of cinema. His final movie, The Brooklyn Premiere, is set to arrive later this year.
However, his electric performance as Chi Chi is the one which will be remembered in the fondest terms. While his character met an unfortunately brutal demise in Scarface, Chi Chi came to Tony Montana’s side in his moment of need, and played a pivotal part in the film’s narrative.
At this stage, no cause of death has been revealed for Salazar, who was found dead at his friend’s home in Brooklyn on August 11th. Salazar’s death has been confirmed by his representative and friend, Ann Wingsong.
Wingsong told TMZ that Salazar’s death was discovered after his friend went to check on him during the morning of August 11th to discover that he had sadly passed away. Although no reason for his death has been established, the representative did stress that Salazar has a history of heart issues.
Despite remaining involved in the film industry, Salazar expressed his disdain about the evolution of cinema during an interview with the Digital Journal in 2017. He lamented, “It’s ridiculous. These days, every schmuck with a digital camera is a filmmaker. The industry has changed completely. I’m an old school actor, and I work with a script. You need to give me a final draft of the script. These days I ask the young filmmakers: ‘where is the script?’ and most tell me that ‘it’s in their minds.’ These young filmmakers have no script.”
Salazar also expressed his disapproval of modern box office phenomenons, adding, “Technology has not changed the industry for the better. What is successful these days is car crashing and films such as Iron Man and Batman. Very few movies these days have a story to them.”
Outside of acting, Salazar was a well-respected stand-up comedian and performed regular live shows across the United States. Notably, he performed his act on the television show, Showtime at the Apollo, in 1992.
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