Before Bill Skarsgård took on the role of Eric Draven, the late Brandon Lee portrayed the vengeful superhero from James O’Barr’s comic.

“The Crow,” which premiered in 1994, could have marked a significant turning point in Lee’s career. He was just 8 years old when his father, the famous action star Bruce Lee, passed away from brain swelling. Renowned critic Roger Ebert rated the film as “a greater cinematic achievement than any of Bruce’s films” in his review.

In a recent interview with YSL News, director Rupert Sanders spoke highly of Lee’s role: “He’s incredibly talented in the film, displaying a striking kind of stillness.”

Filming kicked off on February 1, 1993, coinciding with Lee’s 28th birthday. He played a rock musician who comes back from the dead seeking vengeance after he and his girlfriend are brutally murdered. Lee was planning to marry his personal assistant, Eliza Hutton, on April 17 in Mexico, just after wrapping production in Wilmington, North Carolina. Tragically, on March 31, Lee lost his life during a filming accident involving a scene where his character meets a fatal end.

As a new adaptation of “The Crow” is about to be released, we reflect on the sorrow surrounding the original film.

What happened to Brandon Lee on the set of ‘The Crow’?

In a key scene that didn’t make it to the final cut, Eric is shot by the character Funboy (played by Michael Massee). During the filming, Lee was accidentally shot in the abdomen by a fragment of a dummy bullet that had been left in the barrel from a previous scene.

The .44 Magnum revolver was loaded with blanks that a crew member had hastily put together by extracting gunpowder from actual bullets. When the blank was fired, it propelled the fragment with the force of a live round, hitting Lee from approximately 15 feet away.

As a result of this tragic accident, Lee sustained severe internal injuries and lost a considerable amount of blood. He passed away at New Hanover Regional Medical Center following several hours of surgery.

No criminal charges were filed in connection with Lee’s death. However, his mother, Linda Lee Cadwell, initiated a negligence lawsuit against the producers and 13 other individuals and companies. The lawsuit, which also included Hutton, was eventually settled for an undisclosed sum.

How did the filmmakers complete ‘The Crow’ after Brandon Lee’s passing?

The film was finished with the collaboration of special effects firm Dream Quest Images and stunt performer Chad Stahelski, who later directed the four “John Wick” films.

Months after the incident, stunt coordinator Jeff Imada reached out to Stahelski, a friend of Lee’s, to assist in wrapping up “The Crow.” Stahelski traveled to meet director Alex Proyas to evaluate Lee’s footage.

“For two days, it was just (Alex) and I together, teaching me how to emulate Lee’s movements, showing me the footage, and instructing me on what was needed,” Stahelski recounted to Yahoo Movies UK in 2019. “I truly believe that Brandon would have wanted us to finish the film with quality, and it endures as a cult favorite today—it’s still one of my top films.”

For the remake of ‘The Crow,’ director Rupert Sanders prioritized no live ammunition

In discussions with YSL News, Sanders highlighted the critical nature of safety on film sets.

“Working in this industry is inherently perilous,” Sanders mentioned. “You always have high-speed cars, scaling cranes, or racing horses in the mix; there’s a constant risk, but for me, safety is paramount. It’s simply not worth the danger,” he stated.

“From day one, I instructed the armorer to eliminate live-firing weapons,” Sanders affirmed. He opted for airsoft guns, which appear like real firearms but function using compressed air.

Sanders mandated that no blank ammunition was allowed on set. All the shooting was accomplished using digital effects. He believes this approach maintains the film’s integrity without compromise. In fact, he argued that using visual effects can offer a more realistic portrayal than using blanks, which often don’t behave like actual bullets anyway.”

Contributors: Patrick Ryan and Maria Puente