New director signs on for 'The Crow' reboot

Credit: Dimension Films

Spanish director F. Javier Gutierrez, who helmed the 2008 apocalyptic drama "Before the Fall" (a.k.a. "Tres Dias"), has replaced his countryman Juan Carlos Fresnadillo ("28 Weeks Later") as the director of the forthcoming reboot of "The Crow". The news comes on the heels of the statement released yesterday by Relativity Media and The Weinstein Co. - who had been warring over distribution rights to the film - that they had settled their differences out of court and would be moving forward with the project jointly.

The project also has a new writer in the form of Jesse Wigutow (who has performed uncredited work on such projects as "Tron: Legacy" and "8 Mile"), who will be taking over scripting duties from "Watchmen" co-writer Alex Tse. 

"'The Crow' adaptation will be a gritty reboot of the iconic character Eric Draven, who returns from the grave as The Crow on a mission to avenge his wife’s murder, so that his soul can finally rest," reads the official press release. "The original film is known for its breakthrough visual style as well as its unique production design and cinematography.  The project is currently in development; start of production, targeted release dates and casting to be announced."

For the record, Relativity CEO Ryan Kavanaugh is listed as a producer on the project, while The Weinstein Company’s Harvey and Bob Weinstein are listed as executive producers.

The original film, based on the comic book series by James O'Barr, was released in 1994 to critical acclaim and over $50 million in domestic box-office (on a reported budget of $23 million). It gained notoriety when star Brandon Lee was killed in a freak on-set accident near the end of production.

Gutierrez's "Before the Fall" won numerous awards during its international festival run, including for Best Director at the 2009 Screamfest genre film festival in Los Angeles.

If anyone reading has seen "Before the Fall" and has thoughts on whether Gutierrez is the right choice for the reboot, sound off below!