Bill Skarsgård and FKA Twigs on battling the pressure of 'reimagining' The Crow

Watch: The Crow star explains why he didn't want to draw on the 1994 original for remake

Bill Skarsgård and FKA Twigs know there is pressure on the new remake of The Crow to appeal to both fans of the original cult favourite and new viewers, but they think it’s struck the balance right, they tell Yahoo UK.

The original 1994 gothic superhero thriller starred Brandon Lee as Eric Draven, who goes on a blood-soaked revenge mission when his girlfriend, Shelly Webster is killed in front of him. The film became a legendary Hollywood tragedy when Lee was killed on set due to a gun malfunction. The film was able to be finished thanks to crafty editing, and since then, has picked up a fervent cult following.

Unsurprisingly, a film with a solid IP and in-built fandom got pegged for the remake. Development has been in the works since 2008, with a revolving door of stars and reworked stories attached, though Skarsgård and FKA Twigs were officially attached in 2022 with director Rupert Sanders.

With the weight of emotion and nostalgia attached, FKA Twigs, who plays Shelly, says that, despite this story being a reimagining of the original, there’s a lot that can still be recognised.

"I think the main similarity is that the original film is for outsiders. It's for people that have this beautiful, dark, romantic pit in their stomach, and maybe don't 100% fit into society as it's planned out for us," she says.

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"Eric and Shelly are still outsiders and they still find each other and I think a lot of people could see themselves in that. But the story is a reimagining and I think that does have to be acknowledged."

Watch a trailer for The Crow

For FKA Twigs, there was a huge benefit to this film introducing new elements to the story. "I personally loved fleshing out the female character," she says. "Shelly didn't really have a character before but now she really does. So that was a great honour."

For Skarsgård, there was a much heavier weight on his shoulders, as not only was he leading the film and re-introducing Eric Draven to the world, but he also had the legacy of Brandon Lee to contend with. Still, he says that he tried to think of The Crow as an entirely new entity and focus only on the story in front of him.

"I don't try to think too much about a broader sort of conception of it. [Like] here's the role and here's the director and what is this story and what do I bring to that story to make it as truthful and as grounded as I can."

The Crow is in UK cinemas from 23 August.