As predicted in our pre-year report on upcoming reboots and remakes, The Crow reboot - which has been through more ups and downs than a carousel horse - is raising itself from death similar to its titular vengeful spirit. No sooner than we heard that Relativity Media and the Weinstein Company's lawsuit over the film was settled, comes word that a new director has been (re-)attached to the project, in the form of F. Javier Gutiérrez, best known for the Spanish Apocalyptic drama, Before the Fall.

There are also reports that The Crow is close to snagging writer Jesse Wigutow, who is a relatively untested but fast-rising Hollywood scribe, with projects-in-the-works that include a Steve McQueen biopic and a remake of the spy-thriller The Osterman Weekend, which is based on the novel by Robert Ludlum (writer of the Jason Bourne books).

Gutiérrez will replace 28 Weeks Later director Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, who was himself a replacement for Blade director Stephen Norrington. Not so coincidentally,  Gutiérrez was in talks for The Crow director's chair a year ago, so clearly Relativity Media came calling quick, once Fresnadillo split. With the legal woes now done, Gutiérrez should be on solid ground to get the ball rolling.

Wigutow will be taking on a script that has passed through many hands in the last few years, including Norrington, The Wettest County writer Nick Cave, and Watchmen writer Alex Tse. It has not yet been confirmed if the script will be totally re-written - but at this point, it might just be the best idea: fresh start.

The next big job to tackle, of course, is the casting of The Crow himself. Norrington had Mark Wahlberg attached to star, and for awhile it looked like Fresnadillo had Bradley Cooper in the lead (see the concept art of Cooper as the The Crow for a taste of what might have been).

Will Wahlberg circle back to the project? Or will another leading man team with Gutiérrez to revisit the tale of the dead man who came back for vengeance? At the rate that things are developing, we'll probably find out soon enough.

The Crow reboot is scheduled for release sometime in 2013.

Source:  Variety