The John Wick Movies Share a Surprising Connection to The Crow

Before stepping behind the camera to direct films in the John Wick franchise, Chad Stahelski began his career as a stunt performer, coordinator, and highly influential figure in action films. He has worked on some high-profile projects as a stuntman, including being the key stunt double for Keanu Reeves in 1999’s The Matrix and serving as a martial arts stunt coordinator in the film’s first two sequels.

Before that hugely influential piece of work, Stahelski worked on 1994’s The Crow, doubling actor Brandon Lee alongside fellow stuntman Jeff Cadiente. The movie was to be a big breakthrough for Lee as an actor, likely paving the way for him to have a career similar to that of his father, the late Bruce Lee. Sadly, much like his father, Brandon Lee tragically lost his life far too soon, and the circumstances surrounding his death while filming The Crow would impact the film industry for years to come. It also put Stahelski in a delicate position to ensure the film could be finished as a legacy for its fallen star.

A Series of Unfortunate Events Led to The Crow’s Tragedy

The Crow

Release Date

May 19, 1994

Runtime

102

On March 31, 1993, Lee was filming a scene where his character Eric Draven was shot after witnessing the beating and rape of his fiancée Shelly (Sofia Shinas). In the scene, Michael Massee’s character Funboy fires a .44 Magnum Smith & Wesson Model 629 revolver at Lee as he walks into the room. For these scenes, revolvers will use dummy cartridges fitted with bullets, but no powder or primer, for close-ups because they look more realistic than blank rounds with no bullets. Two weeks before filming the scene where Eric is shot, the same gun had to be shown in close-up, so this particular method was used for that scene.

The film’s prop crew was said to be hampered by time and money constraints, so instead of being commercial dummy cartridges, the crew created their own by pulling the bullets from live rounds, dumping the power charge but not the primer, and reinserting the bullets. There were reports that an unsupervised actor was pulling the trigger on the gun two weeks before the fatal scene while it was loaded with the powderless but primed round.

Doing this without having the primer removed would cause the primer to detonate with enough force and energy to launch a bullet and lodge it in the barrel of the gun. In the scene, the revolver was meant to be fired at Lee from a distance of 12–15 feet, and the dummy cartridges were to be exchanged for blank rounds, which consisted of a live powder charge and primer but no bullet so that the gun could be fired without the risk of an actual projectile.

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In another example of a series of unfortunate events that could’ve been prevented, the firearms specialist was sent home early that day, and the responsibility for the guns was shifted to a prop assistant who was unaware that they needed to inspect all the firearms before handling them. Because of this, the barrel was not checked for any obstructions when it was time to load it with blank rounds. A dummy round was already trapped in the barrel, which caused the .44 Magnum bullet to be fired out of the barrel with essentially the same force as if it was loaded with a live round, and it struck Lee in his stomach, mortally wounding the actor. He was only 28 years old at the time of his tragic death.

The industry was forever changed by the event, and much of it was once again tragically recalled when production on the film Rust was suspended in 2021 after cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was fatally shot when a gun being used as a prop was fired by actor Alec Baldwin during the preparation of a scene. In both instances, the issue of firearm safety became a big cause of concern, as well as where in the chain of command things went wrong that allowed something like this to happen.

In the case of The Crow, the production was also saddled with the notion of how to move on to complete the film. Most of Lee’s scenes had been completed for the movie before the event, and he was only scheduled to shoot for three more days. Director Alex Proyas and his crew championed on, with some of the script rewritten to add narration to scenes that Lee didn’t complete, but one of the big responsibilities fell on stuntman Chad Stahelski. The young stunt performer was used as a stand-in, and digital face replacement was used to superimpose Lee’s face onto Stahelski’s head.

Chad Stahelski Helped Finish Brandon Lee’s Final Scenes in The Crow

Working through the grief of the situation was hard for all involved, but had Stahelski not been able to step in to complete some of Lee’s scenes, it’s possible that The Crow as we know it wouldn’t exist today. Stahelski was friends with Lee for five years before the accident, and the pair worked out regularly in the gym together, forming a bond on that level. They even shared a love for the source material from which The Crow drew.

When it came time to figure out how to complete the film a few months later, the stunt coordinator, Jeff Imada, contacted Stahelski and pitched standing in for Lee because they were close, and he had a movement and walk similar to the actor’s. Even though Lee’s face would be superimposed on his, it also helped that Stahelski looked similar to the actor, making it easier to make some of the effects seamless enough to appear as if Lee had completed the scenes in question.

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Proyas, who was tasked with finishing the film as the director, had the weight of the world on his shoulders, and it was something Stahelski noticed in their first meetings together. Stahelski has said to Yahoo Movies UK that the director “seemed noticeably destroyed” by the entire situation, but he wanted to soldier on because he believed Lee would want them to finish the project.

“I’d never met the man before but he was very emotional, and very open. He goes, ‘Okay, look, I’ve struggled with this for months, I didn’t know if I wanted to finish, but here’s the deal. I love Brandon. We had a great working relationship. I firmly believe 100% that he would want me to finish this film, if you’re on board with that, I’d like to work with you.’ For the next two days, it was just him and I in a room, teaching me how to walk and talk, showing the footage and saying ‘This is what I need from you.’

Against all odds, The Crow was ultimately released on May 13, 1994, to solid critical acclaim and an impressive box office. The film carries an 84% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes with a consensus that reads, “Filled with style and dark, lurid energy, The Crow is an action-packed visual feast that also has a soul in the performance of the late Brandon Lee.” Many critics praised Lee’s performance, and they truly believed that it would’ve been a breakthrough for the actor that would’ve made him a huge movie star.

Some critics also noted the changes made to the film following Lee’s death, which some saw as changing the movie from being just a genre film to something much more profound and compelling. It was obvious to most who saw the film that Lee’s death permeated the project, but it was praised because everyone behind the scenes did their best to make it a fitting legacy for the actor.

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It’s clear that the events of The Crow impacted all involved, and it certainly shaped how Stahelski ran his movies when he became a filmmaker himself. He has stated previously that the accident on The Crow happened because “a lot of little dumb things got by,” and one mistake led to others. When speaking before the release of John Wick: Chapter 3, Stahelski mentioned that that event brought change on sets, but it’s unfortunate that something bad had to happen to make these changes more prevalent.

“You know what that leads to? John Wick is 90% guns, firearms. A lot of the safety or the methodology we use, it came about because of that accident. It’s retroactive, which sucks, it’s like most f***ing things in life. No one wants to change anything until something bad happens. But I know a great deal about that story, and there’s no one thing you could point a finger at, it was a lot of little dumb mistakes that shouldn’t have happened.”

Even though the industry saw the Rust tragedy happen in 2021, firearm safety on the majority of film sets has improved since the tragedy that befell The Crow. It really did cause a stir and a movement in the industry because it should’ve been easily prevented, and moves needed to be made to ensure that this would be very unlikely to happen again.

For many years, Brandon Lee was the face of this movement, and it’s a huge reason why The Crow is beloved by so many fans around the world. Not only is it a visually stunning piece of work loaded with top-notch action, but it’s also a moving and beautiful showcase of filmmaking because of the tragedy surrounding it and the love from all involved who came together to complete it in Lee’s memory. Even though the film has this shadow of grief surrounding it, Stahelski is still able to watch the movie today and believes that it serves Lee well.

“To be honest, I didn’t know how I’d feel about it. I was a little emotional at the premiere when I was invited to see it. But, years later, I still watch it. I have that reserve, but I have good feelings. I’m proud of the work. That situation, obviously, it’s unchangeable, so at least it came out the way it did. It was a good testament to who he was.”

The Crow is currently streaming on MGM+ and Paramount+. The 2024 reboot of The Crow is set to be released in theaters on August 23, 2024.