How to Watch ‘The Crow’ Movies in Order

You can’t keep “The Crow” down. That’s kind of its whole thing. Naturally, the concept of the wronged dead who return from their grave seeking vengeance — inspired by James O’Barr’s comics of the same name — has sprung forth a franchise, which spans five total films since Alex Proyas’ iconic, stylish film debuted in 1994. The original film remains a heartbreaking watch after the tragic on-set death of star Brandon Lee, but it also holds up as a stunning, massively influential goth rock urban fantasy — not to mention an early comic book adaptation.

The rest of the “The Crow” movies? Well, they’re not quite so enduring, despite a steady stream of familiar faces in the casts, including Kirsten Dunst, Edward Furlong, Mia Kirschner, Fred Ward, David Boreanaz and now, Bill Skarsgard and FKA Twigs in the long-awaited remake.

Aside from a central character that carries over from the first to second movie, there’s very little connective tissue between the films aside from the central conceit, so you don’t need to worry about any plot chronology to watch “The Crow” movies in order. That said, here’s what the release date order looks like:

• “The Crow” (1994)
• “The Crow: City of Angels” (1996)
• “The Crow: Salvation” (2000)
• “The Crow: Wicked Prayer” (2005)
• “The Crow” (2024)

“The Crow” (1994)

The original 1994 film follows Lee as musician Eric Draven, who returns from the dead to avenge his and his fiancee’s murder one year after their death — on Halloween. The film also stars Ernie Hudson, Michael Wincott, Sofia Shinas, Bai Ling, Tony Todd and Rochelle Davis as Sarah.

“The Crow: City of Angels” (1996)

Vincent Perez took over as the Crow after Lee’s tragic death, playing Ashe Corvin, a father who returns from the dead to avenge the horrific murder of himself and his young son. This time, the Crow has a little help from an adult version of Sarah (Mia Kirshner), the young girl from the first movie who has previous experience with the Crow. Directed by The Cure’s go-to music video director Tim Pope, “City of Angels” also stars Iggy Pop, Judah Earl, Thomas Jane and late “Power Rangers” actress Thuy Trang.

“The Crow: Salvation” (2000)

Hallmark favorite Eric Mabius takes over as the Crow in the third installment, playing Alex Corvis, an innocent young man falsely convicted of his girlfriend’s horrific murder. After an execution gone wrong, Alex returns from the grave to hunt down the man with a mysterious scar that the police could never find. Directed by Bharat Nalluri, the film’s cast also includes Kirsten Dunst, Fred Ward and Jodi Lyn O’Keefe.

“The Crow: Wicked Prayer” (2005)

Edward Furlong stars as Jimmy Cuervo, an ex-con who returns from the dead after he and his girlfriend are murdered as a part of a ritual to awaken the Antichrist. Directed by Lance Mungia, the fourth film also stars David Boreanaz, Tara Reid and Emmanuelle Chriqui.

“The Crow” (2024)

After nearly 15 years of stops and starts, “The Crow” remake finally arrived in 2024, starring “It” and “Barbarian” actor Bill Skarsgård as Eric Draven. Like the original film, it finds Eric returned from the dead on a mission of vengeance after the death of his beloved Shelley (FKA Twigs), but there are several key differences that set the films apart. Directed by Ruper Sanders, “The Crow” also stars Danny Huston.

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