Alex Proyas and The Crow (1994)
Way back in 1994 the dark gothic film, ‘The Crow’ was released to much acclaim and a $50m box office. But it was against a background of tragedy after its star Brandon Lee (son of Bruce) had been killed in an on set accident involving a firearm. The films director Alex Proyas, like so many people, was shocked. A highly regarded music video director it took him some years to get over what had happened and it would be four years before he could bring himself to direct a feature film again.
The sequels…
The Crow was a box office success and a sequel appeared in 1996 but to a hugely negative reaction and a meagre $17m box office. A TV series appeared in 1998 that lasted only series despite decent reviews and a third Crow film appeared in 2000 followed by a fourth film in 2005 to a poor critical reception. A fifth film that was a reboot of the original was made in 2022 directed by Rupert Sanders, a visually stylish helmed whose previous films had included 2017’s live action ‘Ghost in the Shell’ and prior to that 2012’s ‘Snow White and the Huntsman’. In the title role he had cast Bill Skarsgard in another iconic role having played Pennywise in ‘It : Chapter One & Two’. The sat on the shelf for two years before being released in 2024 and like the previous films was largely ignored earning only $24m.
Alex Proyas and the legacy of The Crow
We had the opportunity to speak to director Alex Proyas about The Crow and its sequels and he was forthright in his opinion of what came after the original film whether it be a sequel, a reboot and the impact it has on Brandon Lee’s legacy.
related feature : The Crow 30th Anniversary Edition – 4kUHD / BLU-RAY disc review
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Alex Proyas talks about The Crow here….
