Celebrating ‘The Crow’ and Queer Excellence at Bushwig

A genre fan’s greatest weakness will always be immersion. Last Friday I got lucky, and found myself at an underground venue in Bushwick ahead of The Crow’s release. Bill Skarsgård will star as Eric Draven alongside FKA Twigs as Shelly Webster, and the film, set to release Friday, August 23, 2025, is a “modern reimagining” of the original comic by James O’Barr. Its predecessor, The Crow (1994) was one and the same, but it’s been three decades, and “modern” looks a little different than it did in the 90’s. I’m sure that’s what many fans of The Crow are thinking right now. And after spending a night at one special event, I think I might have gotten a taste of what to expect from director Rupert Sanders.

The event was titled OMEN and presented by Bushwig, NYC’s annual, and homegrown, festival of “drag, music & love”. As per the invitation, “partnering with Bushwig, we’ve crafted an evening that embodies the essence of the film—think goth, queer, bare skin, pulsating music, and brooding sensuality”. Sounds about right—I’m in. 

Meet the Performers

La Zavaleta, last seen on The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula season four, was the host of the evening, rocking white feathers and layered fishnet stockings. She kicked off a roster of both remarkable drag and seductive performances by Mars Hobrecker, Maxx Love, and Spindarella. Then, a night of performances was closed out by Maddelynn Hatter, last seen on The Boulet Brothers’ Dragula season three. Themes of the show included post-industrial goth aesthetics, a forbidden and complicated lust, and most of all, queer excellence and expression.

Until four in the morning, guest DJs at “Omen”—Amber Valentine, Horrorchata, and Ickarus—spun a healthy amount of that same goth industrial beats I hope are carried over into the film. One of the most loved aspects of Alex Proyas’ The Crow (1994) was its keyed-up musical background. The motion picture soundtrack has bites from The Cure, Nine Inch Nails, Rage Against The Machine, and other artists that illustrate the cinematic dark and gritty 90s. The next modern rendition should sound like today’s underground nightlife—and maybe something similar to what I found at Bushwig Presents OMEN: An Immersion into The Crow.

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