Stahelski was a friend of Brandon Lee, at Inosanto Academy, who died from a gunshot wound on March 31, 1993, after an accidental shooting on set of The Crow. After the death, Lee's fiancée, Eliza Hutton, and his mother supported Director Alex Proyas' decision to complete the film. At the time of Lee's death, only eight days were left before completion of the movie. A majority of the film had already been completed with Lee and only a few scenes remained to be done. To complete the film, the story was rewritten and Stahelski served as a double, while special effects were used to give him Lee's face. Another stunt double, Jeff Cadiente, was also used to complete Lee's part for the movie.