First Look at Tom Hardy as Al Capone in ‘Fonzo’

Director Josh Trank has released the first photo of Tom Hardy starring in his upcoming movie Fonzo.

Hardy plays the infamous gangster Al Capone in the forthcoming film. The production has been somewhat secretive for the past several months, with few whispers escaping the set. Finally, Trank decided to give fans a peek by posting one close-up of Hardy on Wednesday.

“Fonzo,” he wrote simply.

The movie is not a typical mob story, however. Hardy plays an older version of Capone, following his release from Alcatraz Prison. The story will reportedly follow Capone in his later years, after a suffering from syphilis and dementia. The gangster died not long after returning to his normal life, and was forced to face his violent past in the process. Capone was 48 years old when he passed.

Hardy, 40, appears to have been aged considerably for the part. The famously handsome actor bears scars and wrinkles all over his plaid, clammy complexion. He has been given a thinning, receding hairline and appears to be wearing pajamas. Still, the big cigar leaves little doubt about who he is supposed to be.

Hardy himself teased the movie back in March, when he posted a photo of himself at least partially in costume. The actor appeared to be sitting in a dressing room of some kind, wearing prison clothes and holding a fedora in one hand. Still, the digital watch and rows of anachronystic beads around his wrists made it clear that this was not his final form as Capone. His sleeve of dark tattoos on one arm was also not covered up.

Hopefully, Fonzo will be a triumphant return to the box office for Trank, who suffered a whole lot of bad press back in 2015 when he directed Fantastic Four. The reboot went over pretty badly, with negative reviews and poor ticket sales as well.

To make matters worse, Trank lashed out the studio following the release. On Twitter, he assured fans that they would have loved his “version” of the movie.

“A year ago I had a fantastic version of this,” he wrote in the now deleted post. “And it would’ve recieved [sic] great reviews. You’ll probably never see it. That’s reality though.”

Fonzo is still in post-production, but it has yet to receive a release date. In addition to Hardy, the film will star Linda Cardellini, Matt Dillon, Kyle MacLachlan and Kathrine Narducci.