The Big Picture

• The Crow reboot faced a tumultuous journey with multiple directors, actors, and studio changes.
• The original director envisioned a realistic and dark tone, contrasting the gothic style of the original movie.
• Despite ongoing criticism and changes, the new version of The Crow is set to premiere on August 23, 2024.

The long-gestating reimagining of The Crow is finally slated to debut this August, with Bill Skarsgård slipping on Eric's black leather coat. Some would consider the timing fortunate, especially with the original Crow celebrating its 30th anniversary. Others feel that the entire project is a mistake, citing that the first official trailer for The Crow felt at odds with the original's tone. No matter what side you might fall on, it's a miracle that there's a new version of The Crow. It took roughly 16 years to assemble a cast and crew for the film, from the reimagining's announcement in 2008 to the present day. Many actors and directors boarded and departed The Crow over the years, combined with some seismic shifts in studio ownership. That's a recipe for a long, rocky road to the silver screen.

The 'Crow' Reimagining Was Almost Helmed by the Directors of 'Blade' and 'Damsel'

The first director to approach The Crow was Stephen Norrington. Norrington's no stranger to comic book adaptations: he directed the first Blade movie, which is regarded as one of the comic book movies that ignited a comeback for the superhero movie. He also helmed League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, which is notorious for serving as the end of Sean Connery's acting career. Norrington also had a specific vision for the film, which he told Variety about when he was first tapped to direct: "Whereas Alex Proyas' original was gloriously gothic and stylized, the new movie will be realistic, hard-edged and mysterious, almost documentary-style." Shortly afterward, Mark Wahlberg was announced to be in the running to play Draven. It wouldn't be the first time that Wahlberg has been linked to a reboot of a popular franchise; he was also attached to a version of The Six Million Dollar Man that's still languishing in the dreaded "development hell."

Norrington eventually departed The Crow, which led Juan Carlos Fresnadillo to board in 2011. Bradley Cooper was now in the running to play Draven but eventually had to drop out due to a scheduling conflict. In the meantime, another group of actors — James McAvoy, Channing Tatum and Ryan Gosling — were all rumored for the lead role. But none of them ever slipped on that leather trench coat due to Relativity being sued by Harvey Weinstein. Weinstein had launched a lawsuit against Relativity Media due to the distribution rights over The Crow. According to Weinstein's lawyer Bert Fields, Relativity head Ryan Kavanaugh refused to honor the deal struck with Weinstein. “Mr. Kavanaugh was not going to honor that contract. Apparently, he’s going to sell these rights to others. He made a bunch of threats...Some people may submit to that kind of arrogant conduct, but we’re not going to do it," Fields said when the lawsuit was first announced.

'The Crow' Reboot Switched Studios and Even Involved the Comic's Creator

Relativity and Weinstein eventually settled out of court, but Fresnadillo ended up departing The Crow. F. Javier Gutierrez boarded the production soon after, and even scored a new lead actor for the role of Draven: Luke Evans. Rumors also swirled that Alexander Skarsgård and Tom Hiddleston would star in the film. In a bit of an ironic twist, Skarsgård's brother Bill would eventually wind up getting the part. The writer of The Crow comics, James O'Barr, eventually boarded Gutierrez's film as a creative consultant. O'Barr said that he changed his mind after a conversation with Gutierrez, who wanted to adapt the original comic more closely. "That got me intrigued – the idea of adapting it from page 1 and going from there, including a lot of the darker or stranger elements of the comic dropped from the original film," O'Barr said. Sadly, Gutierrez wound up departing the film in 2017 — which is a shame, as leaning more into the darker elements of the comics would make The Crow reimagining stand out from its predecessor. Gutierrez would later release concept art featuring Hiddleston and Evans sporting Draven's iconic makeup, courtesy of makeup artist Bill Corso (Deadpool, Species). “We tried to make it as faithful to the graphic novel as possible. Grounded, and with attention to detail (I wanted to show the scar). Bill is brilliant, and did an amazing job,” Gutierrez told Bloody Disgusting.

Jason Momoa Almost Starred in 'The Crow'

Relativity made one final attempt to adapt The Crow, tapping Corin Hardy to direct. This decision came after Relativity filed for bankruptcy, which put a hamper on production (again). Hardy was also joined by Jason Momoa, with production aiming to take place in 2017. But Hardy and Momoa departed the project shortly after rights to The Crow shifted hands to Davis Film. Hardy later went into detail about the factors that led him to leave The Crow, citing issues with Davis Film's head Samuel Hadida. In an Instagram post, Hardy went into full detail about the passion he had for The Crow. "I poured everything I had into the last 3.5 years of work, to try & create something which honoured what the Crow stood for; from James O’Barr’s affecting graphic novel, to Alex Proyas’s original movie, with great respect to Brandon Lee and with the desire to make something bold and new, that myself, as an obsessive fan, could be proud of." he wrote. "But sometimes, when you love something so much, you have to make hard decisions. And yesterday, deciding it was time to let go of this dark & emotional dream project, was the hardest decision of all. Buildings burn, people die, but real love is forever.”

Even though The Crow now has a star and director with Bill Skarsgård and Rupert Sanders, The Crow reimagining has earned the scorn of Alex Proyas, who directed the original Crow adaptation. Proyas lambasted the idea of a new film in 2019, citing the performance of the late Brandon Lee as a major factor. "I personally tried to squash it every time I hear of one, not that I believe I've been able to. ..it's not just a movie that can be remade. It's one man's legacy. And it should be treated with that level of respect."

Like Eric Draven, The Crow has been through hell and back trying to make it to the big screen. Only time will tell if Sanders and Skarsgård manage to deliver a film that stands on its own, or if the original Crow still reigns supreme.

The Crow flies into theaters on August 23, 2024. The original 1994 The Crow is available to stream on Prime Video in the U.S.

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