I wasn’t a big fan of 28 Weeks Later. Then again, I wasn’t a big fan of 28 Days Later either so I guess the trend is to be expected. However, I was a fan of Alex Proyas’s The Crow and personally see little to no need for another film adaptation, but perhaps there is territory left unexplored from the 1994 comic book series that Relativity feels they can tap into.
We’ve heard talk of a new Crow for some time. Back in October 2010 word was Nick Cave was working on a rewrite of Blade director Stephen Norrington’s script based James O’Barr’s original comic with Norrington expected to direct and Mark Wahlberg rumored to have been offered the lead role. All of that seems to be over with now.
In a press release, Relativity announces 28 Weeks Later helmer Juan Carlos Fresnadillo will direct The Crow, described as a re-invention of the 1994 film with expectation to go into production this fall, which would seem to imply a late 2012 release.
As for that Cave and Norrington script, it sounds like it is out the window as the release says Fresnadillo will collaborate with a writer on the screenplay, though there are no additional names mentioned. The story, though, will again center on the character of Eric Draven as he rises from the dead to avenge his and his fiancee’s death. The role was previously played by the late Brandon Lee, who was accidentally killed on-set.
Considering the search for franchises lately I’m sure this new adaptation will be even more accessible than Proyas’s 1994 noir, which did manage a nice following after taking in over $144 million worldwide on a reported $15 million budget (it cost an additional $8 million following Lee’s death). The original Crow then spawned a theatrical sequel, The Crow: City of Angels, but it was a bust. Two direct-to-video sequels were then released, all of which featured a different actor in the lead role including Vincent Perez, Eric Mabius and Edward Furlong. Mark Dacascos played the title character in a short-lived television series that ran for 22 episodes from 1998-1999.
As for Fresnadillo, he is finishing up work on Intruders, his latest thriller starring Clive Owen centering on an 11-year old girl forced to confront childhood demons.
