The Crow (1994) is a cult classic, for reasons both artistic and tragic. It had stylish direction from Alex Proyas and a star-making performance from Brandon Lee. Lee died during the making of the film, and his passing cast an ominous shadow over a story that was already mired in darkness and loss.
The Crow is now being given a second life. The film is getting the reboot treatment courtesy of director Rupert Sanders and star Bill Skarsgard. Given the extensive lore of the Crow franchise, however, which includes three sequels, there's been uncertainty as to how much the fans need to know going into the new film.
The Crow franchise has never had strong continuity
The success of the original Crow launched a franchise consisting of TV shows and sequel films. The Crow: City of Angels (1996) and The Crow: Salvation (2000) were set within the same timeline as the first film, even though they had little to do with each other narratively. The same goes goes for The Crow: Wicked Prayer, which was released in 2004 and features none of the original cast members.
Continuity is not a strong suit of The Crow franchise. The titular character, a man who comes back to take vengeance against the unjust, is a cool premise for mayhem to occur, and the filmmakers don't bother making connections between the events of, say City of Angels and Wicked Prayer. They don't even use the same man.
The 2024 film represents a fresh start
The Crow (2024) represents an even cleaner break from the original franchise. It's not a sequel, but rather a reimagining of the 1994 film that will detail the rock star's transition to undead avenger. It will not have any narrative ties to what came before, outside of its title character and premise.
As such, you will be able to go into the new film without any knowledge of what came before and be up to speed. If you are a big fan of the 1994 film, though, and would prefer to see a continuation of its storyline, then we suggest checking out the 1998-99 series The Crow: Stairway to Heaven.
Despite only lasting one season, the series picks up shortly after the events of The Crow, and sees the titular character return to Earth in an attempt to find redemption and reunite with his lost love. It's a pretty good sequel, and can be found online.