Reboot of Brandon Lee’s Cult Classic Flops, Earning Only $4.6M

After 16 tumultuous years, a $50M reboot of the 1994 gothic thriller The Crow glided into theaters, only to crash with a dismal $4.6M opening. Critics had already panned the film, giving it a lowly 19% rating, but the harshest feedback came from moviegoers themselves, awarding it just one star.

Lionsgate tried to minimize their risk by investing $10M for North American rights, alongside a $15M marketing budget for this Rupert Sanders-directed revival, starring Bill Skarsgård. Despite these efforts, the studio is poised to lose approximately $30M, far overshadowing its investment in the film.

The question is why the gamble on The Crow, given the market’s current hunger for franchise sequels like Top Gun: Maverick and Bad Boys for Life. Indeed, some intellectual properties may be better off left in the past. Although The Crow was always somewhat of a niche horror, the 1994 original did strike a notable chord, grossing $50.7M domestically on an $11.7M opening weekend.

The story followed a man returned from the grave to avenge his and his girlfriend’s unjust deaths, led by Brandon Lee’s chilling portrayal. Unfortunately, Lee’s tragic death during filming at age 28, compounded by the eerie parallels to his father Bruce Lee’s untimely demise, catapulted the movie to cult status. The original even resonated with the goth and industrial subcultures of the 1990s.

Yet, the history of failed sequels foretold challenges for this reboot. The Crow: City of Angels (1996) managed only $17.9M at the box office, and later installments transitioned directly to home entertainment without notable box office returns. The persistent attempts to restart the franchise indicate that fans might not have been interested in another iteration.

Efforts to recreate The Crow started back in 2008 with Relativity Media, who struggled against rights issues and creative differences. High-profile names like Bradley Cooper, Mark Wahlberg, Ryan Gosling, and even Bill’s brother Alexander Skarsgård were all associated with the revival at various points. The latest version, featuring Bill Skarsgård and directed by Rupert Sanders, began production in July 2022 in Prague.

However, this film faced its own obstacles, notably creative disagreements between the filmmaker and producers. The loss of legendary producer Edward Pressman also cast a shadow over the project. Lionsgate pushed ahead, partly due to a solid relationship with Skarsgård and the hope of leveraging his fan base. Still, the movie’s promotional efforts fell flat, with critics and fans alike expressing disappointment through various social media platforms.

Even the film’s first trailer met with lukewarm responses and public disdain from the original director, Alex Proyas. His comments only fueled the negative buzz, making the new rendition a tough sell. Proyas highlighted fan sentiment in saying that The Crow should remain as a testament to Brandon Lee’s legacy.

Ultimately, The Crow reboot suffered from negative word-of-mouth. Analytics from RelishMix showed an online reach of 76.7M, which is 45% below the action horror norm. Fans criticized the remake for a perceived lack of respect for the original film’s atmosphere and casting choices.

The Wall Street Journal‘s Kyle Smith remarked that the latest version plodded along at a “slow tortured pace,” missing the “trashy fun” and “swaggering style” of the 1994 original. Smith lauded Skarsgård and FKA twigs for their performances but criticized the film’s overbearing gloom.

In conclusion, one insider summarized the failure aptly: “Opera is hard. Opera is not about logic, it’s about emotion,” emphasizing that some stories should perhaps be left to the annals of cinematic history.

Source: Wall Street Journal, RelishMix