The Crow, which shot in Prague during the summer of 2022, will be released in cinemas in the United States on June 7, 2024, distributor Lionsgate has confirmed. A theatrical release date in the Czech Republic and other international territories has yet to be confirmed.
Lionsgate revealed the new release date for The Crow when announcing that another project filmed in Prague, Ballerina, had been pushed back to 2025. Previously, The Crow had not landed a date on the release calendar, and no promotional material from the film has been released to the public.
The Crow is a new version of the James O’Barr comic that was turned into a 1994 film from director Alex Proyas. In the earlier film, Brandon Lee, son of Bruce Lee, starred in the titular role of a musician who was gunned down by thugs and returns from the dead to seek vengeance; the actor tragically lost his life during on on set-accident during production.
The 2024 version of The Crow was directed by Rupert Sanders (Snow White and the Huntsman, Ghost in the Shell), and stars Bill Skarsgård as Eric Draven, the protagonist previously played by Lee. The new film also features musician FKA Twigs as Draven’s fiancée, alongside Danny Huston, Laura Birn (Foundation), Sami Bouajila, and Jordan Bolger in supporting roles. Zach Baylin and William Josef Schneider worked on the script.
In Prague, filming for The Crow took place at Barrandov Studio. Outside of the Czech capital, the film also shot in Most, Vrané nad Vltavou, Břežanské údolí, and Mšecké Žehrovice. Outside of the Czech Republic The Crow also filmed at the new Penzing Studios near Munich.
Following Lee’s death on the original film, The Crow has been considered something of a cursed franchise. Due to a negative experience working with Bob and Harvey Weinstein during post-production of the sequel The Crow: City of Angels, famed music video director Tim Pope has yet to make another feature film.
The current reboot had been in various stages of pre-production for more than a decade, with Mark Wahlberg, Bradley Cooper, Ryan Gosling, Tom Hiddleston, Jason Momoa and others attached or rumored to star as Draven at various points.
Production of The Crow in Prague had been described as “difficult” by those involved with the production. The film shot under the pseudonymous working title Yellow Flower, and some sequences for the project involved extensive nudity from local background actors.
“A huge thank you to the crew and cast of The Crow,” local production agency Czech Anglo Productions, headed by Kevan Van Thompson, wrote on social media when production wrapped in September 2022. “We’ve not posted anything about the film for security reasons, and I cannot remember a more difficult film to shoot in all my time producing movies.”
Despite the release date in just over three months, no promotional material has been released for the film to date. Fans should keep their eyes peeled for an official poster for The Crow or stills of Skarsgård in costume as Draven in the upcoming weeks.
Lead image: Bill Skarsgård in Boy Kills World (2024), Brandon Lee in promotional artwork for The Crow (1994)
