We told you just a couple of days ago that Mark Wahlberg had reportedly been offered the lead role in Relativity Media‘s upcoming reboot of The Crow, to be directed by Stephen Norrington (The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen). The story concluded with the speculation that Wahlberg would likely turn down the role.

Now, Mania.com reports that when asking Norrington for confirmation (or denial) of the Wahlberg casting rumor, the director told them that he is no longer helming the project.

Norrington said,

“I don’t know about that story but I can tell you I’m no longer involved with The Crow.”

Norrington said that an unnamed actor who had become involved with The Crow, who supposedly loved his vision for the movie, demanded a new rewrite of the script, which Norrington co-wrote with Nick Cave, from an original script by a completely different writer:

“As I had gotten involved explicitly as a writer-director my exit was inevitable. I was bummed. I had developed a genuinely authentic take that respected the source material while moving beyond it, and Nick Cave came in and added more depth. I think the fans would have been pleasantly surprised.”

[The Shakedown]

I hope that this is the beginning of the complete collapse of this project. Brandon Lee and his legacy deserve to rest in peace, and James O’Barr‘s source material deserves the respect of being untouchable without his approval.