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Scarface Star Ángel Salazar, who played Al Pacino’s loyal sidekick “Chi-Chi” in the cult classic, has died at the age of 68.
He is said to have died at a friend’s house in Brooklyn, New York, over the weekend. His representative and close friend Ann Wingsong confirmed the news to TMZ. The star suffered from heart problems over the years, but the cause of death was not disclosed.
Wingsong said Salazar died in his sleep and his body was found when the friend went to check on Salazar’s room on Sunday morning (August 11).
The Cuban-American actor was born in 1956 and first got his role as “Chi-Chi” in Brian DePalma’s Scarface 1983. He then played Rico alongside Tom Hanks in Punchline in 1988 and then as Walberto in Carlito’s Way in 1993.
Salazar has never stopped acting and has played since his breakthrough in ScarfaceHis notable achievements include Boulevard nights, New Year’s EveAnd Maniac Cop 2He should appear in The Brooklyn premiere this year. He also made several television appearances as himself, including in Showtime at the Apollo in 1992.
In addition to his work as an actor, Salazar was also a successful comedian, appearing in numerous HBO comedy specials, including Latest comic status.
However, fans will probably remember him most as Tony Montana’s accomplice, who put everything on the line and saved Montana in an iconic “chainsaw scene” in which the gangster nearly lost his life in the most gruesome way after watching his friend Angel being killed with the same tool.
Chi-Chi meets a bloody end when he is killed by a hit squad of drug lord Alejandro Sosa, his back riddled with bullets. G-Unit member Tony Yayo named his rap persona after a line from the film in which Montana asks his friend to get “Yayo,” a slang term for cocaine.
Although the film was not a success upon its release, it has since become a cult film.
The IndependentGeoffrey McNab wrote of the film, which enjoyed four decades of success: “Forty years later, Scarface is considered one of the most influential films of its time. TV dramas from MiamiVice To Narcos owes a lot to him, as do countless other drug-fueled gangster films. And no matter what the early critics say, Tony Montana is almost certainly Pacino’s most celebrated performance.”
