Fear not, movie goers. FKA Twigs is here to save the reputation of pop stars in creepy thrillers (Harry Styles and Taylor Swift your services have been appreciated). Earlier this year, Deadline reported that the Caprisongs artist had been cast in a reboot of the cult classic 90s supernatural superhero movie The Crow (1994).
This isn’t the first time a reboot of the franchise has been attempted — after three sequel movies and two seasons of a 90s TV show, this particular remake has been in the works since 2008 — and so we parked going feral at the casting until we watch all the feathered chaos with our own two eyes.
Well, it now looks as though The Crow will be hitting cinemas in the foreseeable future after all. It’s been reported that filming has now completed in Prague and is going through visual effects production in a studio in Bavaria, Germany. “During a lengthy 10-week shoot, The Crow shot across numerous locations in the Old Town and New Town neighbourhoods of the Czech capital,” writes the The Prague Reporter. “One of the major set pieces for The Crow was shot at Prague’s Rudolfinum concert hall, and involved the participation of hundreds of extras in formal attire.”
There is also some confusion as to whether the new project has turned into a series after documentation filed with the city suggested it would be a TV show with six-episodes. The Prague Reporter noted though that this has not been confirmed by anyone involved in production and the reboot has been consistently previously referred to as a feature film. Nonetheless, with production finished, it’s likely we will get more and more details, first looks and trailers for The Crow in the coming months. Here’s everything you need to know.
What is the plot of The Crow?
The original The Crow movie followed Eric Draven, a murdered musician resurrected from the grave by a crow, looking to avenge those responsible for his death and the assault of his fiancè. In the original movie – which was in turn based on the popular graphic novel from 1989 by James O’Barr – Eric was played by actor and martial artist Brandon Lee. It would be Lee’s final movie, when he died on the set of The Crow from a fatal shot wound from a prop gun. Having filmed most of his scenes prior to the accident, Brandon was posthumously lauded for his performance.
Who will FKA Twigs play in The Crow?
Twigs has been cast as protagonist Eric’s fiancè. Named Shelley in the 1994 movie, her character is beaten and raped in the original, fuelling Eric’s rage and desire for revenge. It’s unclear though if Twig’s character will follow the same plot narrative. At one point during the movie’s development, Kristen Stewart was considered for the role of Shelley.
Who else has been cast in The Crow?
Twigs will be joined by Bill Skarsgård, known for playing creepy clown Pennywise in the It reboots and as the lusty vampire in Robert Egger’s upcoming Nosferatu remake. Over the years Mark Wahlberg, Channing Tatum, Ryan Gosling, Tom Hiddleston, Luke Evans, Nicholas Hoult, and, most recently, Jason Momoa have all been attached to play the lead before the gauntlet was passed to Bill.
The only other person cast as of yet is Danny Huston (Wonder Woman, American Horror Story) in an as yet undisclosed role. Perhaps he will play Sergeant Albrecht, a detective investigating the crimes, or one of those involved in Eric’s death.
Another major character in the original movie — we as of yet don’t know if they will be featured and, if they are, who is playing them — is Sarah, a young friend of Eric and Shelley looking for closure and gets caught up in Eric’s nefarious plans.
Who is behind the camera?
The reboot comes from Rupert Sanders, the director behind Snow White and the Huntsman (2012) and Ghost in the Shell (2017), so we can expect the new iteration in The Crow franchise will be just as dark, eerie and foreboding as the original.
The script for The Crow has been written by Zach Baylin, who was nominated for an Oscar for his writing on King Richard (2021), and will be produced by Edward R. Pressman (who also produced the original) and Malcolm Gray. “The Crow is beautiful, dark, poetic and sometimes disturbing,” director Rupert Sanders said to Deadline. “It is a story of love, loss, grief and revenge. It is a great honour to revisit James O’Barr’s iconic comic and reimagine The Crow as a foreboding voice of today.”
Is there a trailer for The Crow?
Not yet. But with production finished, we expect it won’t be long until we get our first glimpse of the movie.
Is there a release date?
We also haven’t been given any hints as to when we might finally see the movie. We’re expecting, though, that it will be in 2023 and with the original movie being set on Devil’s Night (30 October), perhaps we will be watching The Crow in spooky month next year.