In an interview, Bruce Campbell commented on the future of the iconic “Evil Dead” series and promised more horror films in shorter intervals.
Evil Dead Rise, one of the most infamous horror series, returns to the big screen on April 27, 2023, which got its modest but highly effective start in 1981 with “Dance of the Devils.” Created by filmmaker Sam Raimi, the films have undoubtedly left their mark on pop culture, producing a cult figure of the horror genre, Ashley Joanna “Ash” Williams, known far beyond the genre. Boomstick and chainsaw? Groovy!
Despite her popularity, fans have always had to exercise patience. Most recently, the parasitic demons, also known as Deadites, haunted the cinema in 2013 in the Requel (reboot and sequel) “Evil Dead” by Fede Alvarez. Before that, they even had to wait over 20 years. In 42 years, the series has just brought it to five feature films and a pretty awesome series with “Ash vs Evil Dead”. Sam Raimi should have taken a leaf out of the book of the “Hellraiser” and “Children of the Fury” films, which to date have produced a whopping eleven and ten films, respectively – even if the quality is relatively low.
But that could change now. In an interview with The A.V. Club, producer Bruce Campbell revealed that Sam Raimi plans to expand the cinematic horror universe further and to release new spin-offs at much shorter intervals. In the process, it is also necessary to unify the comparatively inconsistent universe:
“I think the stories will progress a little faster now. We’ll try to tell them every two or three years rather than just every ten years. It’s also the first time that Sam [Raimi] has worked with his brother Ivan to write a kind of bible/guide to give future writers and directors an idea of where to go from here, to tie some of these stories together if possible. So I think the whole thing will grow together a little bit more over the years. But it’s also about the books [of the dead]. It could be a book in the past, a book in the future. That hasn’t been determined yet.”
Bruce Campbell
Moreover, Campbell stressed that the most important thing is not to rush to judgment. The good guy has a point; a certain quality wants to be maintained. And the “Evil Dead” series can boast that it has not yet recorded a single total failure. The idea of another film set in the past, “Army of Darkness”, that you can stream via Amazon, is appealing. How about, say, a movie set during World War II? With one of the three books of the dead, also called Naturom Demonto or Necronomicon Ex-Mortis, in the hands of the Nazis?
For now, though, you can look forward to Evil Dead Rise, which brings some new additions to the franchise. Check out the video to see which other horror titles you shouldn’t miss this year.
Returning as Ash? No chance, says Bruce Campbell
However, Campbell has to disappoint his fans in one thing: He will most certainly not return to the big screen as Ash Williams, even if Raimi had recently stoked hopes of it:
“It’s time for the next generation because we need young, lithe people who can put up with long, horrible hours and excessive makeup – and I’m done with it. The whole thing is so ticked off that it’s hard to imagine. As a producer, it’s my job to surround these actors, directors, and writers with the best crew possible.”
Bruce Campbell
However, the 64-year-old assured that he will make a small cameo appearance in Evil Dead Rise. What would an “Evil Dead” movie be without seeing or hearing something from Ash?
