The Crow reboot starring Bill Skarsgård is heading to the market at 2022’s Cannes Film Festival. According to Deadline, FilmNation Entertainment is bringing the reboot to the biggest film festival of the year to find a buyer that finally takes the reboot out of development hell.
Based on the comic Crow, written and illustrated by James O’Barr, the upcoming reboot promises to offer a fresh take on the story of a vengeful hero who comes back from the grave to solve his own murder. The story was already successfully adapted into a film by Alex Proyas back in 1994, with Brandon Lee playing the titular role. Now, the reboot cast Skarsgård in the leading part, with FKA twigs nabbing the role of the hero’s romantic partner. In the original story, the Crow’s girlfriend gets murdered on the same night as himself and doesn’t play a significant part in the plot. That seems bound to change in the reboot. If FilmNation chose Grammy-nominated performer and film star FKA twigs for the role, it is not to kill her in the first ten minutes of the reboot – at least, we hope so.
The reboot is being helmed by action filmmaker Rupert Sanders, whose previous credits include Snow White & the Huntsman and Ghost in the Shell. Attached to produce are Victor Hadida, Molly Hassell, John Jencks, and Edward R. Pressman, with Dan Farah serving as executive producer. The last we heard about it, the reboot was also aiming for June to start production, which means this is the closest the project ever got to becoming a reality. Now, with The Crow hitting the market in Cannes, the reboot has a real chance of coming to theaters sooner than we thought.
When a reboot for The Crow started to be discussed, Blade director Stephen Norrington was attached to the project. Once Norrington departed, F. Javier Gutiérrez (Rings) took his place, with Luke Evans (Immortals) expected to star as the undead vigilante. The reboot got closer to going into production in 2017, when star Jason Momoa (Aquaman) was chosen to play the Crow, with Corin Hardy (The Nun) grabbing the reigns of the project. Unfortunately, Momoa and Hardy left the reboot after a financial dispute with producers, burying the project for a few more years. Now it’s time for the Crow to finally resurrect.
Skarsgård has proven he can play a wide range of horror characters after showing up as Pennywise the Dancing Clown for the latest It films, Kro in Eternals, and starring in TV shows Hemlock Grove and Castle Rock. Add the star power of FKA twigs and a competent action director to the mix, and The Crow reboot is hot for grabs. We’ll know the project's fate after 2022’s Cannes Film Festival, set to happen between May 17 and May 28.