Ernie Hudson will always be synonymous with Ghostbusters. Every time the franchise has returned to screens for a live-action ghost hunt, even after a long dry spell or for a quick cameo, he has been there.
But another hallmark of his long career was his role in the tragic production of The Crow. Hudson played Sergeant Daryl Albrecht, a cop who was on the scene the night of Eric Draven (Brandon Lee) and Shelly Webster’s murder and tried to solve the case.
When Draven returned from the grave to right wrongs, Albrecht became one of his few allies and a voice of reason when called for. However, playing such a pivotal part in a major comic book adaptation came at a cost.
The tragedy that occurred behind the scenes shook everybody present to their core, and as such, Hudson would rather not rehash anything Crow, unlike The Ghostbusters. In other words, he isn’t paying any attention to the remake coming out.
“I haven’t seen it [the trailer]. The actor, who is playing the lead [Bill Skarsgard], I love and respect,” Hudson told ComicBook.com. “But, for me, The Crow is Brandon Lee. I can’t imagine.”
The actor knows what he wants to see, despite his remarks, and it’s good advice the remake’s supervisors hopefully heeded. “The Crow is many different stories. Let’s hope they don’t try to re-do him, that they do their own thing with it and take it in a different direction,” Hudson said.
The odds, though, that he will watch the new one and find out what direction Skarsgard and filmmaker Ruper Sanders take are slim. Hudson isn’t much of a fan of the series and it’s easy to understand why. “I haven’t seen any of the other Crow [movies], because [of] what happened to Brandon,” he explained.
Hudson registers as a bit more diplomatic in his assessment of the new Crow, but he appears to agree with the original film’s director Alex Proyas who doesn’t want to see anyone trample on Lee’s legacy.
“The Crow is not just a movie,” Proyas wrote on Facebook. “Brandon Lee died making it, and it was finished as a testament to his lost brilliance and tragic loss. It is his legacy. That’s how it should remain.”
“I really don’t get any joy from seeing negativity about any fellow filmmaker’s work,” Proyas added. “And I’m certain the cast and crew really had all good intentions, as we all do on any film. So it pains me to say any more on this topic, but I think the fans’ response speaks volumes.”
NEXT: ‘The Crow’ Fans Are Not Having Fun With Bill Skarsgård’s Version Of Eric Draven