Wait, a reboot of The Crow is finally, actually, seriously, really happening?! It sure looks like it.
After going in and out of development many times and gestating in development hell over the years, it appears that a new film based on James O’Barr’s 1980s indie comic is finally on the road to production. Not only is there a new director at the helm, there’s big casting news with word that the lead role has gone to Bill SkarsgÃ¥rd, known for playing Pennywise in the It movies and whose credits include Hemlock Grove, Castle Rock and The Devil All the Time.
Skarsgård will be playing Eric Draven, a man who, along with his fiancée, Shelly, is brutally murdered by a gang of criminals. He returns from the dead and, with a supernatural crow serving as a guide of sorts, proceeds to methodically stalk and hunt down the killers.
On board to co-star with SkarsgÃ¥rd is singer-songwriter turned actress FKA Twigs, who has reportedly been cast as Draven’s girlfriend/fiancée. This will apparently be a co-lead part; no word as yet on whether the character will appear in supernatural form or if she will survive the attack.
THR broke the news, reporting that the film is to be directed by Rupert Sanders, making his third feature following Snow White and the Huntsman and 2017’s Ghost in the Shell. Behind the screenplay is Zach Baylin, who was recently nominated for an Academy Award for his King Richard script.
“The Crow is beautiful, dark, poetic, and sometimes disturbing,” Sanders said in a statement. “It is a story of love, loss, grief, and revenge. It is a great honor to revisit James O’Barr’s iconic comic and reimagine The Crow as a foreboding voice of today.”
Clearly, all signs point to this actually happening. Preproduction is reportedly underway, a production start date is being eyed for June, and filming is being lined up for Prague and Munich. Plus, word is that the film has a budget of around $US50 million.
Australian filmmaker Alex Proyas directed the 1994 film The Crow, which was well received and went on to earn itself a strong cult following. Lead actor Brandon Lee tragically died following a tragic on-set mishap. Three ill-received sequels followed over the years (1996, 2000, 2005), as well as a 1998 Canadian series, The Crow: Stairway to Heaven, with Mark Dacascos in the lead role.
As for the talent that’s come and gone as this reboot circled fruition: Director F. Javier Gutiérrez (Before the Fall, Rings) was at one point circling with Luke Evans on board to star; director Corin Hardy (The Nun) was looking to take the helm with Jason Momoa in the lead; and Blade director Stephen Norrington was also in talks to helm a reboot.
SkarsgÃ¥rd’s upcoming credits also include Netflix series Clark, franchise entry John Wick: Chapter 4, horror film Barbarian, and action-fantasy Boy Kills World.
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