UPDATE: Here’s our first look at Bill Skarsgard in “The Crow.” As you can see, they’re not looking to replicate Brandon Lee’s iconic look in the 1994 film. This is a brand new interpretation of the cult classic.
EARLIER: It seems as though Hollywood has run out of ideas. Hell, there are hundreds of great books out there begging to be adapted, that would make for exciting movies — instead, we’re hearing of beloved classics like “Vertigo,” “The Wizard of Oz,” and “The French Connection“ getting remade. It’s quite baffling.
Here’s another example. Lionsgate has announced that their remake of the 1994 cult classic “The Crow” will be released on June 7, 2024. Bill Skarsgard stars in the remake — he’ll be taking on the role of Eric Draven, which was made iconic by Brandon Lee in the original.
Suffice to say, this remake of Alex Proyas’ 1994 film, which was based on James O’Barr’s comic book series, has been a misbegotten idea from its very inception. Here’s the synopsis:
The night before his wedding, musician Eric Draven (Brandon Lee) and his fiancée are brutally murdered by members of a violent inner-city gang. On the anniversary of their death, Eric rises from the grave and assumes the gothic mantle of the Crow, a supernatural avenger. Tracking down the thugs responsible for the crimes and mercilessly murdering them, Eric eventually confronts head gangster Top Dollar (Michael Wincott) to complete his macabre mission.
Skarsgard is joined in the cast of “The Crow” remake by singer FKA twigs, who plays Draven’s girlfriend/fiancée, and Danny Huston (“Yellowstone”). Rupert Sanders (“Snow White and the Huntsman”) is directing, from a screenplay by Oscar nominee Zach Baylin (“King Richard”).
The fact that it wrapped filming two years ago, and there are still no images or trailer, tells me something’s off with this one, and why wouldn’t it be?
The whole raison d’être of the original was Brandon Lee. He’s the reason why it’s had such a healthy shelf life. Lee haunts every frame of “The Crow,” which had eerie parallels to his untimely death, a case of art imitating life.
Dariusz Wolski’s noir photography was another iconic component of “The Crow”. Proyas made a fever-dream of a film that I don’t think can really be replicated today — four years after that one, he directed another cult classic, “Dark City.”
