Q&A with SCARFACE’s Joshua Jabcuga

Say hello to Joshua Jabcuga, the writer behind IDW Publishing’s four-issue SCARFACE: DEVIL IN DISGUISE miniseries, now available in trade paperback. Here, Jabcuga talks with BOOKGASM about adapting such an iconic character for the comics.

BOOKGASM: So how you begin tackle such a beloved property? Were you hesitant to even try?

JABCUGA: Hesitant? No. Nervous? Definitely. SCARFACE is a huge property, and I don’t have the luxury that, say, a film may have. If someone goes to see a movie, they pay their 10 bucks and typically sit through the entire film before forming an opinion.

With a comic book miniseries, someone might read the first or second issues and decide not to see the story the whole way through. That’d be like watching the first hour of a film and grading the entire thing on that alone. I always intended this series to be read in its entirety, back to back, all four issues, and I’d like readers to give me the benefit of the doubt. Everything comes together full-circle.

I remember walking into a comic book shop after IDW announced the prequel, and the owner asked me who my influences were. I think he was shocked when I didn’t rattle off the standard answer of “Kirby, Moore, Frank Miller.” I love comics just as much as the next writer in the medium, but my influences, as far as writing, are a bit left-field, and they’re not just limited to writers, per se.

My work takes a lot of inspiration from various places. I’m just as likely to name Tony Iommi or Michael Mann or Charles Beaumont as I am to name a Will Eisner or a Garth Ennis or a Marv Wolfman.

BOOKGASM: Any other uncharacteristic influences come into play?

JABCUGA: When I set out to work on this project – besides the research I did on Cuba, Castro, Che – I made myself a few mix CDs: unofficial soundtracks for this imaginary movie that was playing out in my head, that I wanted to convey onto the page. I listened a lot to this band called The Twilight Singers, because they have this gritty, gutter-glam mentality that I wanted to capture. A little bit of Rage Against the Machine, Sabbath, Pink Floyd’s ANIMALS, The Clahs, Mark Langean, but mainly The Twilight Singers.

It’s funny, but in a lot of ways, I think I set out to make a rock album here, in the form of a comic book. In hindsight, I look at an album like Pearl Jam’S VS., and it’s like, “Oh, my God, that album could be the perfect companion to SCARFACE: DEVIL IN DISGUISE.” From start to finish, you’ve got angry, volatile songs that just want to thrash their way through the enemy lines, like an out-of-control wrecking ball. That was young Tony Montana. He had a hunger for power, but politics told him to get to the back of the line and stand straight.

As you said, SCARFACE is a beloved property. This character is iconic, like
Elvis. Take away the drugs and violence, though, and you have a man with some attributes that I think we could all stand to have more of: a strong will to overcome the odds, an unwillingness to conform, and the balls to just go after what you want in this world. It’s a bit rock ‘n’ roll.

BOOKGASM: What does DEVIL IN DISGUISE have to offer the hardcore SCARFACE fan? And what about those who may have never seen the movie?

JABCUGA: The hardcore SCARFACE fan will get a glimpse into a story that even Hollywood is afraid to tell. Right now, this is as close to a true SCARFACE follow-up that fans will ever get, because you know if Hollywood ever did produce another SCARFACE movie, I’m sure they’d find a way to screw it up somehow.

For those who have never seen the movie, hopefully they’ll see a tale that is equal parts ghetto opera and heavy-metal Western. Plus, IDW paired me up with Alberto Dose, who has a style that really seems tailor-made for this type of story. I’m honored to be working with him.

Tony Montana, the main character and my antihero, is a loathsome animal anyway you slice it. Glorified or not, people need to see this. While I didn’t want to glorify the seedier elements of society, there’s shit that goes down in the real world that would make even the most violent action film or comic book or rap album tame in comparison.

When I began to tackle this project, I wanted to put a mirror to the underbelly of the beast. Keep in mind that my portrayal will depict the beauty of this beast, not just the warts. The main message of the Brian DePalma/Oliver Stone film was quite simply, “The world is yours.” For Tony Montana, that world came with a lethal price tag. My job was to show Tony working his way up from the gutter to be able to afford to pay that price.

Maybe if Tony Montana was born and raised in the U.S., or during different times, he would have turned into a self-made wealthy businessman, or a doctor, or maybe not. Maybe his evil ways were in his blood, and the climate of the culture worked as an enabler. I wanted to be a bit more ambiguous. How much of the world is ours?

BOOKGASM: Was it always the intention to make this a miniseries? Isn’t there potential to merit it continuing further?

b>JABCUGA: IDW Publishing and Universal Studios call the shots. IDW did publish a miniseries sequel to the movie, but it accentuated the cartoonish violence of the film, and the ’80s style and decadence, which was certainly one angle to take. People seemed to dig it, but since that route had already been taken, I chose to play the prequel straight as a razor, which I preferred anyway. I wanted the book to feel a bit like a Peckinpah film. I also mentioned the film CITY OF GOD.

I could easily think of storylines to fill another hundred issues, without even blinking, but that would probably rest on the shoulders of the fans. If the demand was there, I don’t think IDW would have a problem doing more SCARFACE storylines. They have such a diversified line-up of projects though, that sometimes it’s best not to get too comfortable in one spot for too long.

Part of that company’s appeal to me is that they always seem to be pushing the envelope, with their Clive Barker projects, or anything Ash Wood gets his hands on, while still respecting comics’ heritage, by releasing spectacular collections of old school classics like DICK TRACY, which still hold up to this day. But I will admit, I’d kill to see a SCARFACE vs. PUNISHER one-shot.

BOOKGASM: What kind of movie do you think makes for a good adaptation to comics? And what doesn’t?

JABCUGA: I don’t think you can count anything out. If they can make a fun movie like PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN, which was based on an amusement park ride, I think they can make a decent comic out of any movie. The medium of comics, though, is like a blood brother to film. One of the first comic books I ever read was a Marvel Comics’ adaptation of RETURN OF THE JEDI. That was a play-it-by-the-numbers adaptation.

Over the last five years or so, Hollywood has finally seen the value of comics as a legitimate artform. More and more, you’re seeing film or television properties being transported into comics, and not just strict adaptations. Take my quote-unquote SCARFACE adaptation. I’m dealing with elements that were never explored in the film. In capable hands, these comic book adaptations can only enhance the experience for the fans of the film.

For example, I get to show how Scarface got his infamous scar. Unlike a character such as Spider-Man, there is so much of the Scarface character that hasn’t been done to death. People are taking these adaptations, prequels, sequels, what have you, as legitimate pieces of their favorite character’s mythology, and it’s hard not to when the original creators are so hands-on or give the comics adaptations their full blessings. IDW has been really successful in this area.

The movies that don’t translate into good comics are probably just those that somehow manage to ruin the fans’ love for the original. On the flipside, I can’t imagine a comic book ruining a movie for me. Although I have seen numerous movies that have been lost in translation and have managed to do their best to ruin a comic book for me, this is more often than not a case of Hollywood not sticking close to the source material.

Ninety-nine percent of the comics out there could be lifted right onto the screen with minimal changes, but you know that’s not always the case. I bet somewhere at this very moment, Alan Moore is lobbing hand-grenades into a landfill of DVDs of LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN and FROM HELL. Golden hand-grenades, but pissed off, nonetheless.

BOOKGASM: What’s on tap for you next?

JABCUGA: I just want to keep pushing myself as a writer. It’s like martial arts or training at the gym: Every time I sit down to write something, I hope to walk away better than when I first sat down.

With regard to upcoming projects, I have something that is just waiting on a greenlight from the powers that be, which I can’t mention just yet. It looks like a really fun story, though, and it’ll give me a chance to lighten up a little and show a different side to my writing.

I just want to keep getting my ideas out there. I’m lost when I’m not writing. I love the challenge of writing for comic books, and the unlimited possibilities that the medium offers. I’d like to see some of my short fiction get out into the world, too.

Ultimately, I’d like to be a cross between Cameron Crowe and Rod Serling. I want to look back in 40 years and say I did something cool. A little bit rock ‘n’ roll, a little bit country. –Rod Lott

Buy it at Amazon.

OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS AUTHOR:
• SCARFACE: DEVIL IN DISGUISE by Joshua Jabcuga and Alberto Dose

OTHER RECENT BOOKGASM AUTHOR INTERVIEWS:
• Q&A with 9TAIL FOX’s Jon Courtenay Grimwood
• Q&A with SKIN’s Ted Dekker
• Q&A with THE WHEEL OF DARKNESS’ Douglas Preston

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