The Original Actor For The Crow’s Eric Draven Would Have Been Wildly Different

The original actor producers wanted to cast in The Crow would have resulted in a very different movie. James O’Barr created the original Crow graphic novel as a way to grieve over the passing of his fiancee, with the story following a man who comes back to life a year after he and his lover were brutally murdered to seek vengeance. Comic book movies were still finding their feet during this era because outside of Tim Burton’s Batman films, the genre had met with limited success. Studios soon became interested in turning The Crow into a movie, though, since the graphic novel itself was intensely cinematic.

Many actors were considered for The Crow, including ’90s heartthrobs like Christian Slater and Jon Bon Jovi. Brandon Lee was a big fan of O’Barr’s comic and won the role, while also playing a part in designing the film’s action sequences. Tragically, Lee was killed by a firearm malfunction towards the end of production, and after a period where producers considered scrapping the film, they opted to finish it using stand-ins and CGI. Lee’s performance received praise, with The Crow becoming a surprise smash hit.

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Execs Originally Wanted The Crow To Be Michael Jackson

There were several sequels to The Crow and a TV series, but none matched the success of the original. When producers first approached O’Barr about adapting the comic, they pitched several outlandish ideas. In a DVD interview for the film, O’Barr recalled a producer’s idea to cast Michael Jackson and make The Crow a musical helmed by famed music video director Julian Temple (Absolute Beginners). O’Barr initially thought this was a joke and began laughing – until he realized to his horror the producer in question was dead serious.

How The Crow Would Have Been Wildly Different (And Worse)

Naturally, O’Barr greeted the musical idea with revulsion. He also couldn’t understand why they wanted to adapt his story, if they planned to morph it into something completely different. The idea of Michael Jackson as The Crow didn’t get far, but sight unseen, it sounds like a terrible idea. At its core, the comic is an angry, melancholy revenge tale, so having Eric or the supporting cast breaking out into songs at regular intervals already undermines that.

Where to watch The Crow online

Jackson himself had little acting experience outside his music videos and is unlikely to have delivered the soulful turn Lee did. Had Jackson signed on, he probably would have sought total creative control too, which would have taken it further away from the tone of the comics. The Crow starring Michael Jackson might have been a bizarre curiosity, but it’s difficult to picture it being anything other than a disaster.