The Crow remake loses Bradley Cooper; seeks Mark Wahlberg and Channing Tatum

My interest in a remake of The Crow has been totally dependent on who would star. The production has had more than it's share of issues stretching back a couple of years, back when Stephen Norrington(Blade) was set to direct with a script by Nick Cave(The Proposition). Then there was this whole flap with a reported A-list star(rumored to be Mark Wahlberg) blowing the whole thing up with his demands, and derailing the whole thing. Ultimately Juan Carlos Fresnadillo(28 Weeks Later) was hooked up for the directing gig, and Bradley Cooper settled in nicely for the lead role.

But due to some legal tug of war with The Weinsteins over the rights, The Crow got set back a little bit. Bradley Cooper saw himself attached to a number of high profile gigs like Paradise Lost, The Place Beyond the Pines, and recently The Silver Linings Playbook. With a schedule like that, something had to give, and unfortunately that means dropping out of The Crow.

With Cooper gone, the studio has it's eye on two potential replacements. The first is the very guy who was a part of the film before: Mark Wahlberg. Ironically, Cooper just took over for Wahlberg as the lead in The Silver Linings Playbook, which will be directed by David O. Russell(The Fighter).

The other option is Channing Tatum, who frankly could use a franchise like this all to himself. He's an actor I personally think has a ton of potential, and we've seen it more often than not when a part of larger ensembles. I'd like to see what he can do with the focus squarely on him, such as in the film Fighting from a couple of years ago. Both actors are incredibly busy, however, so it's hard to say if it's even possible for this to fit in their schedule. Don't be surprised if other, lesser name stars get added to the list in the coming days. Currently the script is being rewritten by Alex Tse(Watchmen).

The many different versions of The Crow all follow the same basic idea. Based on the James O'Barr comic book, the films involve an unjustly murdered victim, resurrected by the Crow spirit to seek vengeance on the ones responsible for their death. [THR]