Created by James O'Barr as a means of dealing with the death of his fiancée at the hands of a drunk driver, The Crow #1 was released in 1989 and remains a beloved classic. A big screen adaptation starring the late Brandon Lee followed in 1994 and has since earned a legion of fans.
Some ill-fated sequels followed, but 2024 will see the release of a remake from Snow White and the Huntsman director Rupert Sanders. IT and John Wick: Chapter 4 star Bill Skarsgård takes on the role of Eric Draven, and a new trailer showcases his brutal quest for revenge.
When the first stills were released from the movie, they drew a largely mixed response (Alex Proyas, who helmed The Crow three decades ago was also unimpressed). However, this trailer is bloody, unrelenting, and a lot of fun; honestly, Sanders' take on Draven looks way better than expected!
We also have a new poster, but neither that nor the trailer includes any indications that Skarsgård's anti-hero will don the character's iconic white face paint. Still, despite unflattering comparisons to Jared Leto's Joker, this iteration looks suitably imposing.
Check out the first trailer and poster for The Crow below.
Bill Skarsgård takes on the iconic role of THE CROW in this modern reimagining of the original graphic novel by James O’Barr.
Soulmates Eric Draven (Skarsgård) and Shelly Webster (FKA twigs) are brutally murdered when the demons of her dark past catch up with them. Given the chance to save his true love by sacrificing himself, Eric sets out to seek merciless revenge on their killers, traversing the worlds of the living and the dead to put the wrong things right.
"What drew me to this was the opportunity to make a dark romance, something that dealt with loss, grief, and the ethereal veil between life and death and reaching through that," Sanders recently said of the film. "Look, I grew up listening to Joy Division and the Cure, and this movie is a bit like a Cure song - the beauty of melancholy."
"I think the beauty of Bill is that he has a disturbing beauty, and as he transforms through his loss he becomes this thing that even he can’t control. It’s that famous line: 'Whoever fights monsters must be careful that they don’t become one.' That look was me in the '90s when we were squat-raving in London, [mixed with some modern influences] like Post Malone and Lil Peep. I hope people who are 19 today look at him and go, 'That guy is us.'"
The Crow is directed by Rupert Sanders from a script by Zach Baylin and Will Schneider. Bill Skarsgård plays Eric Draven alongside FKA Twigs as Shelly Webster, his ill-fated love. The supporting cast includes Danny Huston, Isabella Wei, Laura Birn, and Sami Bouajila.
The Crow is set to arrive in theaters on June 7.