The Dark Origins of The Crow: What Really Happened?

We’ve all heard of the absolute tragedy that plagued the set of 1994’s The Crow– where star Brandon Lee was accidentally killed by live round in a prop gun. But what if I told you that you don’t know the half of it? In fact, what if I told you that the darkness and twisted fate of this movie started years before the cameras rolled on The Crow. Because folks, it did. In today’s episode, we’re going to break down the real-life events of The Crow’s comic book writer James O’Barr and how the endless bad luck in his life shaped one of the most beloved films in cinema history. This is the story of James O’Barr, and what REALLY happened to the cursed property that is The Crow.

So, for those of you who don’t know, James O’Barr is a writer and illustrator who created The Crow. A series of extremely dark and melodramatic comics that have become iconic for their gothic art style and serialized writing. And, if you’ve ever read this comic book, you can tell that the person who wrote it was coming from a very dark place. It’s the story of Eric Draven, an aspiring musician and his love Shelly, seemingly the only positive thing in his life. When a bout with a local crime syndicate leaves Eric and Shelly murdered in cold blood, the spirit of The Crow resurrects Eric and gives him the chance to avenge their deaths bring peace to Shelley’s tortured soul. Dark.

So, where did the inspiration for this disturbing and heartbreaking yet tender and emotionally thorough book come from? Well, let’s rewind the clocks to the late 70s when James O’Barr was just a young adult. The young artist had rough go at life that started from childhood, but the one thing he DID have going for him, is that he was in love. O’Barr’s fiancee, a young girl named Beverly, was the light of O’Barr’s life and inspiration for all of the light in his work. Unfortunately, before they can marry and properly start their lives together, Beverly is tragically killed by a drunk driver, leaving O’Barr alone. And that loneliness was all too familiar to him. See, O’Barr was raised as an orphan after his mother (an addict) couldn’t provide proper care for him. He had a hard run at life and Beverly was his reason to endure and keep seeking something better. And with that being taken away from him, O’Barr was left with only the darkness inside of him.

In the early 80s, James joins the US Marines and gets a cool job drawing instructional material for training the troops. This was technically his first job in the arts. But illustrating military training pamphlets wasn’t the cure for O’Barr’s loneliness or the grief that he carried with him from Beverly’s passing. So during his time in the USMC, he starts working on a story all of his own. A dark vigilante tale that unfolded the rage and unfairness that James felt. A story about loss, grief, love, revenge, and justice that would serve as both a therapeutic exercise, as-well as a passion project to keep him occupied.

And you can really feel this in the writing of the character of Eric Draven (and later- others). The character is an artist who (despite life’s many challenges) finds the will to create art and endure the pain of living all in hopes to make a life that’s worth something for his liver, Shelly. When she’s taken away from him before her time, Eric lives out every fantasy that O’Barr wished he could dish out to the driver responsible for taking away HIS love. The parallels are there, to be sure. But folks, this is just the beginning of this macabre tale.

The first issue hit the shelves in 1989, and was published as a small run of independent books in the alternative category. The comic book was specifically described by James O’Barr as “therapy” in which he hoped to find a sense of closure or catharsis to his trauma through the work. Despite the comic book series becoming a massive hit, O’Barr mentioned in a 1994 interview when asked if the book and it’s success had brought any resolution to him, and he answered: “No. As I drew each page, it only made me more self-destructive. If anything, there is pure anger on each page.”

And this seemed to be the status quo for the writer. Despite doing what he loved, and now making a living doing it, it all seemed worthless for this young orphan who lost his only love. But then, something happened- Movie studios around Hollywood were requesting meetings with James. They wanted to get their hands on The Crow and make it into the next big movie. Surprisingly, this picked up quick. It seemed like every studio wanted to get in on this property and each one brought their own… unique ideas.

The very first meeting O’Barr took was with an unnamed movie studio who pitched him on the idea of a musical adaptation of the comics. And get this, they wanted MICHAEL JACKSON to play the Crow. Could you…even…imagine.

Barr was not happy with the pitch, but he was interested in taking more meetings. Eventually, writer John Shirley and O’Barr found each other. See, John Shirley had been shopping his own original script around town called Angry Angel which kept getting denied by studios because it was TOO similar to The Crow. Shirley wanted to get his hands on these comics and see what all the hype was about. He read them, and he LOVED them. But more importantly, he understood them. It was then that he went directly to O’Barr and offered to write the script.

Of course, the movie that we eventually got in 1994 is a damn-near PERFECT adaptation that captures O’Barrs tone, flare, and deeply disturbed gothic noir. Director Alex Proyas was hired to helm the project and (as we all now) the inspired choice to cast up and coming star Brandon Lee as Eric Draven AKA The Crow was made. And this is where the tragedy continues. We all know that Brandon Lee was accidentally shot and killed during the production. But let’s look closer. O’Barr was directly involved with the production of the film and was on set nearly every day. During this time, he bonded with Lee in a big way. Brandon Lee had been a huge fan of the comic book series and related to them in a way that James O’Barr felt made him perfect for the character. There was a calmness to him that would only fade when the rage of the character would come through. These guys just GOT each other.

O’Barr had found a new friend. Someone that he saw as a collaborator and respected as an artist. Brandon Lee was even engaged to be married at the time, giving O’Barr the sense of young love that he knew all-too-well. It seemed like maybe the dust and ash of James’ past was finally settling and a new dawn was upon him. Something that looked bright, not bleak. Until…

This left O’Barr (as well as hundreds of others from the cast and crew) devastated and completely head-spun. It didn’t stop the movie from getting made- but it did remind O’Barr that this character and story that he created to deal with his own trauma and loss, only caused even more trauma and loss for himself, and everyone who knew Brandon Lee.

Obviously, none of this is O’Barr’s doing, and I’m sure today he’d say that he knows he’s not to blame. But I can only imagine what it felt like at the time having his creation be the catalyst for such horrific pain. But the beauty of it all is that through that pain, through the loss, trauma, darkness and longing, The Crow became a cultural phenomenon that has gone on to inspire, and maybe even save COUNTLESS people who found something in his comics, the movie, maybe some of the other movies…? And above all- The Crow has lived on for over 30 years- keeping the memory of Brandon Lee and Beverly alive as well.

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