'It' Star Tapped to Become Newest 'The Crow' Actor
A reboot of The Crow is reportedly in the works, with Bill Skarsgård taking over the lead role previously held by Brandon Lee. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Skarsgård will play Eric Draven under director Rupert Sanders. Given the complicated legacy of the original 1994 movie, there's no telling how this project will be received.
The Crow is a supernatural superhero story originally created by James O'Barr as a comic book published by Caliber Comics in 1989. It became a cult classic and a passion project for Lee, who played the titular hero Eric Draven in 1994. Unfortunately, Lee was wounded in an accident on set during filming and passed away from his injuries. The movie was still released and was successful, but many fans expected it to remain the only on-screen version of The Crow ever to be made. However, some low-budget follow-ups were made, as well as a TV show. Now a full-blown reboot is on the way, restarting the Crow saga in a big way.
A new team is now bringing the story back to life. Director Sanders is reportedly working with screenwriter Zach Baylin, who just recently wrote the award-winning script for King Richard starring Will Smith. Of course, fans know Skarsgård for playing Pennywise in It, along with many other eerie roles in recent years.
The Crow reboot is reportedly scheduled to begin shooting this summer. It will have a budget of about $50 million – not small by any means but not enormous compared to other recent superhero movies either. It will film in Prague and Munich.
The Crow is about a young man with a promising life whose future is thrown off by a violent crime. He and his fiancee are attacked by a street gang and Eric is shot in the head while his fiance is violently assaulted and then murdered. Eric seems to die but is somehow resurrected by a mystical crow. At the prodding of this spirit, Eric begins to track down and murder all of the gang members who attacked him and his fiance, uncovering his strange new powers in the process.
The 1994 movie changes some details in this origin story. It is inextricably linked with the legacy of Lee, who was the son of movie martial artist Bruce Lee. Brandon was only 28 when he passed away, and fans have often lamented that both he and his father had to die so young. With Bruce Lee's work making a bit of comeback in recent years, The Crow reboot is sure to draw some attention to the family.
As for Skarsgård, he has certainly proven his ability for action, horror and the space in between where The Crow will need to thrive. There's no word yet on when The Crow reboot will premiere.