The Evil Dead (franchise)
Encyclopedia
The Evil Dead is a trilogy
of horror film
s created by Sam Raimi
. The films focus on the protagonist, Ashley "Ash" J. Williams
, played by Bruce Campbell
, who deals with "deadites", which are undead antagonists created by the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis. The film series has since expanded into other formats such as video games and comic book
s. A musical opened in Toronto in 2003 based on the storyline of the first two films.
was a college dropout who had just quit his job as a taxicab driver. Sam Raimi
was studying literature at Michigan State University
with Robert Tapert
finishing his economics degree. While putting the finishing touches on It's Murder!
Tapert suggested doing a feature length film to Raimi. Raimi felt it to be impossible citing that they could never pull off the funding. Campbell didn't mind stating that "I could always move back home." Tapert was fearing that he would become an expert in fisheries/wildlife
while Raimi was afraid that he would go back to work at his dad's home furnishing store. These were the practical reasons that convinced the three to put forth a feature length film. The three were highly supportive fans of the comedy genre, though they decided not to do such a film as they felt "a feature-length yuck fest just didn't compute." To do the film as a horror was put forth after they were inspired by a well noted scene from It's Murder. This moved Raimi to write the short film Clockwork
. The three felt the end result was very effective and represented a new direction that their films could take, that of a semi-successful horror film.
This would later lead to research of low-budget horror films at the local drive-in
theater. The many films that they watched were the "two films for two dollars," allowing them the chance to document the behavior of what would become their target audience. Campbell quoted, "the message was very clear: Keep the pace fast and furious, and once the horror starts, never let up. 'The gorier the merrier' became our prime directive." Films that were witnessed amongst them included Massacre at Central High
and Revenge of the Cheerleaders. The idea to do a "prototype" was commissioned, to prove not only to themselves, but also to potential investors that they were capable of doing a full length horror film. The same year, at Michigan State, Raimi had been studying H. P. Lovecraft
and was most impressed with Necronomicon
, or simply The Book of the Dead. From these rough concepts, he concocted a short story where a group of four friends unwittingly dig up an Indian burial ground and unleash horrific spirits and demons. In the spring of 1979 filming of Within the Woods started over a three day weekend on a budget of $1,600.
Within the Woods, as well as serving as a prototype, had impressed the filmmakers. For a marketing strategy a screening was arranged at their former high school, with a positive response.
, Robert Tapert
and Bruce Campbell
bought a few "how to make an independent film" guide publications. The budget was originally centered on $150,000 while shooting with a Super 8
camera. However, due to technical difficulties, it was decided to move it up to 16 mm format, as they wanted to film the project in the style of the many low-budget films at the time that had come out in the 1970s. Since they had little experience in the film industry, the three felt they should buy business suits and briefcases as a means to convince investors that they "had all the answers." A man named Andy Grainger, who was a friend of Tapert and owner of a series of movie theaters, was the first primary investor. He stated, "Fellas, no matter what, just keep the blood running." As a tribute to him, there's a scene in the finished film where an old film projector whirs to life and "projects" blood running down the screen.
Most importantly, Grainger provided the name of a distributor in New York City
whom they could approach for possible distribution. The company was Levitt-Pickman Films, who most recently was famous for Groove Tube, starring a very young Chevy Chase
. The filmmakers took a train at $40 each, as they knew none of their cars could make an entire round trip road trip. One of Campbell's old girlfriends named Andrea allowed them to stay at her apartment. Campbell slept with her while Raimi and Tapert were in the living room. Andrea's cat fell asleep on Raimi's face without even disturbing him. Raimi, who is allergic to cats, had his eyes swollen shut.
, Ash, and the Book of the Dead and what it brings with it.
, The Evil Dead was released under the title La Casa ("The House") and Evil Dead II became La Casa II. These were followed by three unrelated movies: Umberto Lenzi
's La Casa 3
(aka Ghosthouse) (1988
), Fabrizio Laurenti's La Casa 4
(aka Witchery) (1988
) and Claudio Fragasso
's La Casa 5
(1990
). This is similar to what has happened in George A. Romero
's Living Dead
series starting with Zombi 2
.
. In an article released May 3, 2007, he stated he was trying to get his brother Ivan Raimi, who co-wrote Army of Darkness, to write the screenplay with him. On July 26, 2008, Sam Raimi stated that Evil Dead 4 was "in the wheelhouse" during the 2008 Comic Con
. In March 2009, Raimi confirmed that an Evil Dead script was being worked on with Ivan Raimi.
Bruce Campbell announced at San Diego Comic Con that Evil Dead 4 is a possibility, but it will not happen for several more years as Raimi was working on Spider-Man 4, but that project was cancelled in January 2010, which could mean it could be Raimi's next project after the Warcraft
film.
So far, he's seven pages into a script for Evil Dead 4, with brother Ivan, just as he hoped: "Every time I'm with my brother Ivan, we write another page of it. It's in Detroit and in my garage." Raimi continued: "There's some dialogue. Ash being an idiot. Ash taking some abuse. Some character stuff and then some structure of Act Two. Just other possibilities for things that could happen. It's ideas, jokes, things we'd like to see."
Of course, Bruce Campbell is "firmly in mind" to star.
In the unlockable bonus content of Evil Dead: Regeneration, Bruce Campbell says the rumor of Freddy Vs. Jason Vs. Ash is "partly true", claiming that basically there are 3 separate franchises arguing "No, we're the better franchise!" "No, no you suck!" so he says with this debate constantly ongoing it might happen, but not in the foreseeable future. Sam Raimi narrated and talked over his fourth installment of the franchise at Streamy Awards
2010.
In 2005, there was talk of Ash appearing in a sequel to Freddy vs. Jason
; however, Sam Raimi
eventually decided against it. Though tempted, Raimi thought it would be unfair to the other director to dictate rules for what Ash could and could not do, which would be required as Raimi has plans for Ash in the future. As of late 2006, a new crop of rumors had begun to circulate about a team-up of Freddy Krueger
, Jason Voorhees
and Ash, but Raimi, New Line and Campbell have yet to make any comment. Campbell said of the original rumors that if he were to sign up, "[Ash] would have to win, or I wouldn't do it." However, Wildstorm
/Dynamite
have announced that they would be presenting the sequel in comic form as the six-issue mini-series Freddy vs. Jason vs. Ash
. Reports surfaced in July 2011 that claimed that there is a sequel in the works and it is currently being prepped.
and Sam Raimi
, but was not to include the Ash character. It was also said that the movie would be about a group of teenagers that go to the cabin and find the book, and the similarities with the original would end there.
However, in August 2007, Bruce Campbell revealed in a radio interview that the proposed remake was "going nowhere" and "fizzled" due to extremely negative fan reaction.
More recently, rumors have suggested that a re-write of a script is being reviewed and Bruce Campbell suggested that in true style of Sam Raimi's films he would do a cameo role, jokingly suggesting that it would be a remake/sequel and Knowby's ghost would be replaced by ghostly Ash.
In July 2008, Raimi has stated that he intends to work with his brother Ivan in the development of a sequel, not a remake, and Campbell further supported this by saying that The Evil Dead remake was no longer a possibility.
In April 2011, Bruce Campbell did an AskMeAnything interview on Reddit.com, saying "Newsflash: We are remaking Evil Dead. The script is awesome. I will be one of the producers and possibly play the milk man". He added "In all honesty, we would all love to make another Evil Dead movie. When that will happen? Who can say - we're all working on other jobs right now. We're not trying to dodge anybody's questions, there just isn't that much to talk about. The remake's gonna kick ass - you have my word". On July 13, 2011 it was officially announced, via a press release, that Ghost House Pictures would be producing the upcoming remake of The Evil Dead and that Diablo Cody
was in the process of revising the script and the will directed by Fede Alvarez.
. It does not continue the story of Army of Darkness but is a fictionalized portrayal of Bruce living his everyday life in which he is erroneously believed to be as heroic as the Ash character and is hired to fight an ancient spirit. The film was released to a limited number of theaters on October 26, 2008 and was released on DVD
and Blu-ray Disc
on February 10, 2009.
produced a mini-series adaptation of Army of Darkness adapted and illustrated by John Bolton. A trade paperback
of this series was released by Dynamite Entertainment
on September 25, 2006.
In 2008, Dark Horse revisited the franchise with a four issue adaptation of the The Evil Dead written by Mark Verheiden
and once again illustrated by John Bolton.
acquired the license to publish titles based on Army of Darkness and, in conjunction with Devil's Due Publishing
, released the Army of Darkness: Ashes 2 Ashes mini-series. A second mini-series, Army of Darkness: Shop till You Drop Dead
followed in 2005. Later that year, Dynamite separated itself from Devil's Due and began focusing entirely on self-published titles featuring the Army of Darkness franchise. This included an ongoing series that began in 2005 and saw Ash battling other horror icon such as Herbert West
and Dracula
. The series lasted thirteen issues before being rebooted with a second volume in 2007. The second series lasted twenty-seven issues before coming to an end. Over the years, there have also been several one-shot specials as well as crossovers with a wide variety of characters such as, Marvel Zombies
, Darkman
, Freddy Krueger
, Jason Voorhees
, Xena
, Danger Girl
and even Barack Obama
.
, Christopher Bond and Frank Cipolla
recently created an Off Broadway show titled Evil Dead: The Musical, based on the film series. Its New York run was directed by Bond and Hinton Battle
, who also choreographed the show. Ryan Ward played the part of Ash. Tying in with the midnight movie plot of a group of friends visiting a wooded cabin and unleashing untold evil, performances did not start until 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Previews began October 1 and the show opened November 1 at the New World Stages
. It was announced on January 31, 2007 that Evil Dead: The Musicals New York production at New World Stages would close on February 17, 2007. Toronto producers announced a new Toronto production of the show, also starring Ryan Ward, at the Diesel Playhouse. The new production started its running May 1, 2007 and has been announced to end on September 8, 2007.
Trilogy
A trilogy is a set of three works of art that are connected, and that can be seen either as a single work or as three individual works. They are commonly found in literature, film, or video games...
of horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
s created by Sam Raimi
Sam Raimi
Samuel Marshall "Sam" Raimi is an American film director, producer, actor and writer. He is best known for directing cult horror films like the Evil Dead series, Darkman and Drag Me to Hell, as well as the blockbuster Spider-Man films and the producer of the successful TV series Hercules: The...
. The films focus on the protagonist, Ashley "Ash" J. Williams
Ash Williams
Ashley J. "Ash" Williams is the protagonist in the Evil Dead horror film franchise, played by Bruce Campbell, and created by director Sam Raimi. Throughout the series, Ash has to face off against his loved ones inside an abandoned cabin as they are possessed by "deadites", the evil souls of the dead...
, played by Bruce Campbell
Bruce Campbell
Bruce Lorne Campbell is an American film and television actor. As a cult movie actor, Campbell starred as Ashley J. "Ash" Williams in Sam Raimi's Evil Dead series of films and he has starred in many low-budget cult films such as Crimewave, Maniac Cop, Bubba Ho-tep, Escape From L.A. and Sundown:...
, who deals with "deadites", which are undead antagonists created by the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis. The film series has since expanded into other formats such as video games and comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
s. A musical opened in Toronto in 2003 based on the storyline of the first two films.
Within the Woods
In January 1979 Bruce CampbellBruce Campbell
Bruce Lorne Campbell is an American film and television actor. As a cult movie actor, Campbell starred as Ashley J. "Ash" Williams in Sam Raimi's Evil Dead series of films and he has starred in many low-budget cult films such as Crimewave, Maniac Cop, Bubba Ho-tep, Escape From L.A. and Sundown:...
was a college dropout who had just quit his job as a taxicab driver. Sam Raimi
Sam Raimi
Samuel Marshall "Sam" Raimi is an American film director, producer, actor and writer. He is best known for directing cult horror films like the Evil Dead series, Darkman and Drag Me to Hell, as well as the blockbuster Spider-Man films and the producer of the successful TV series Hercules: The...
was studying literature at Michigan State University
Michigan State University
Michigan State University is a public research university in East Lansing, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1855, it was the pioneer land-grant institution and served as a model for future land-grant colleges in the United States under the 1862 Morrill Act.MSU pioneered the studies of packaging,...
with Robert Tapert
Robert Tapert
Robert Gerard Tapert , sometimes credited as Rob Tapert, Robert G. Tapert, or Rip Tapert, is an American film producer, best known for his co-founding of, and his subsequent work with, the Renaissance Pictures company....
finishing his economics degree. While putting the finishing touches on It's Murder!
It's Murder!
It's Murder! is a 1977 short film directed by Sam Raimi, starring Bruce Campbell, Sam Raimi and Scott Spiegel.- Plot :The film tells the story of a family whose uncle is murdered. The son gets everything because he's in the will...
Tapert suggested doing a feature length film to Raimi. Raimi felt it to be impossible citing that they could never pull off the funding. Campbell didn't mind stating that "I could always move back home." Tapert was fearing that he would become an expert in fisheries/wildlife
Wildlife
Wildlife includes all non-domesticated plants, animals and other organisms. Domesticating wild plant and animal species for human benefit has occurred many times all over the planet, and has a major impact on the environment, both positive and negative....
while Raimi was afraid that he would go back to work at his dad's home furnishing store. These were the practical reasons that convinced the three to put forth a feature length film. The three were highly supportive fans of the comedy genre, though they decided not to do such a film as they felt "a feature-length yuck fest just didn't compute." To do the film as a horror was put forth after they were inspired by a well noted scene from It's Murder. This moved Raimi to write the short film Clockwork
Clockwork (1978 film)
Clockwork is a 1978 short horror film directed by Sam Raimi, starring Scott Spiegel and Cheryl Guttridge.-Plot:A homeless serial killer stalks a lonely rich woman .-External links:* * at BookOfTheDead.ws...
. The three felt the end result was very effective and represented a new direction that their films could take, that of a semi-successful horror film.
This would later lead to research of low-budget horror films at the local drive-in
Drive-in
A drive-in is a facility such as a bank, restaurant, or movie theater where one can literally drive in with an automobile for service. It is usually distinguished from a drive-through. At a drive-in restaurant, for example, customers park their vehicles and are usually served by staff who walk out...
theater. The many films that they watched were the "two films for two dollars," allowing them the chance to document the behavior of what would become their target audience. Campbell quoted, "the message was very clear: Keep the pace fast and furious, and once the horror starts, never let up. 'The gorier the merrier' became our prime directive." Films that were witnessed amongst them included Massacre at Central High
Massacre at Central High
Massacre at Central High is a 1976 horror-thriller film directed by Dutch director Rene Daalder, a protegé of Russ Meyer. Despite its title, it is not at all a slasher film; the film is more an odd and violent political allegory, which tells the story of a series of revenge killings at a fictional...
and Revenge of the Cheerleaders. The idea to do a "prototype" was commissioned, to prove not only to themselves, but also to potential investors that they were capable of doing a full length horror film. The same year, at Michigan State, Raimi had been studying H. P. Lovecraft
H. P. Lovecraft
Howard Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
and was most impressed with Necronomicon
Necronomicon
The Necronomicon is a fictional grimoire appearing in the stories by horror writer H. P. Lovecraft and his followers. It was first mentioned in Lovecraft's 1924 short story "The Hound", written in 1922, though its purported author, the "Mad Arab" Abdul Alhazred, had been quoted a year earlier in...
, or simply The Book of the Dead. From these rough concepts, he concocted a short story where a group of four friends unwittingly dig up an Indian burial ground and unleash horrific spirits and demons. In the spring of 1979 filming of Within the Woods started over a three day weekend on a budget of $1,600.
Within the Woods, as well as serving as a prototype, had impressed the filmmakers. For a marketing strategy a screening was arranged at their former high school, with a positive response.
Financing
Filming was first commissioned for the summer of 1979 in Michigan. In order to organize the budget, Sam RaimiSam Raimi
Samuel Marshall "Sam" Raimi is an American film director, producer, actor and writer. He is best known for directing cult horror films like the Evil Dead series, Darkman and Drag Me to Hell, as well as the blockbuster Spider-Man films and the producer of the successful TV series Hercules: The...
, Robert Tapert
Robert Tapert
Robert Gerard Tapert , sometimes credited as Rob Tapert, Robert G. Tapert, or Rip Tapert, is an American film producer, best known for his co-founding of, and his subsequent work with, the Renaissance Pictures company....
and Bruce Campbell
Bruce Campbell
Bruce Lorne Campbell is an American film and television actor. As a cult movie actor, Campbell starred as Ashley J. "Ash" Williams in Sam Raimi's Evil Dead series of films and he has starred in many low-budget cult films such as Crimewave, Maniac Cop, Bubba Ho-tep, Escape From L.A. and Sundown:...
bought a few "how to make an independent film" guide publications. The budget was originally centered on $150,000 while shooting with a Super 8
Super 8 mm film
Super 8 mm film is a motion picture film format released in 1965 by Eastman Kodak as an improvement of the older "Double" or "Regular" 8 mm home movie format....
camera. However, due to technical difficulties, it was decided to move it up to 16 mm format, as they wanted to film the project in the style of the many low-budget films at the time that had come out in the 1970s. Since they had little experience in the film industry, the three felt they should buy business suits and briefcases as a means to convince investors that they "had all the answers." A man named Andy Grainger, who was a friend of Tapert and owner of a series of movie theaters, was the first primary investor. He stated, "Fellas, no matter what, just keep the blood running." As a tribute to him, there's a scene in the finished film where an old film projector whirs to life and "projects" blood running down the screen.
Most importantly, Grainger provided the name of a distributor in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
whom they could approach for possible distribution. The company was Levitt-Pickman Films, who most recently was famous for Groove Tube, starring a very young Chevy Chase
Chevy Chase
Cornelius Crane "Chevy" Chase is an American comedian, writer, and television and film actor, born into a prominent entertainment industry family. Chase worked a plethora of odd jobs before moving into comedy acting with National Lampoon...
. The filmmakers took a train at $40 each, as they knew none of their cars could make an entire round trip road trip. One of Campbell's old girlfriends named Andrea allowed them to stay at her apartment. Campbell slept with her while Raimi and Tapert were in the living room. Andrea's cat fell asleep on Raimi's face without even disturbing him. Raimi, who is allergic to cats, had his eyes swollen shut.
The Evil Dead
Released in 1981, this is the first official film in the series. It introduces the series' protagonistProtagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
, Ash, and the Book of the Dead and what it brings with it.
Evil Dead II
Released in 1987, this film shows the horror themes of Ash's dealings with the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis and demons.Army of Darkness
Released in 1992, this is the last film in the franchise so far, taking Ash back in time to England in 1300 AD. The movie has horror attributes, but is based mainly on slapstick and action. This time the evil creatures are explicitly referred to as deadites.Unofficial sequels
In ItalyItaly
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, The Evil Dead was released under the title La Casa ("The House") and Evil Dead II became La Casa II. These were followed by three unrelated movies: Umberto Lenzi
Umberto Lenzi
Umberto Lenzi , is an Italian film director who was very active in low budget crime films, peplums, spaghetti westerns, war movies, cannibal films and giallo murder mysteries ....
's La Casa 3
La Casa 3
La Casa 3 is the unofficial Italian sequel to Evil Dead II released in 1988. In Italy, The Evil Dead was released under the title La Casa and Evil Dead II became La Casa II...
(aka Ghosthouse) (1988
1988 in film
-Top grossing films :- Awards :Academy Awards:* Act of Piracy* Action Jackson, starring Carl Weathers, Craig T. Nelson, Vanity, Sharon Stone* The Adventures of Baron Munchausen* Akira* Alice...
), Fabrizio Laurenti's La Casa 4
La Casa 4
La Casa 4 is a 1988 horror film. It is the first sequel to La Casa 3 , starring stars David Hasselhoff, Catherine Hickland, Hildegard Knef, Linda Blair, & Annie Ross.-Plot:Gary and his gal pal Linda visit an island off...
(aka Witchery) (1988
1988 in film
-Top grossing films :- Awards :Academy Awards:* Act of Piracy* Action Jackson, starring Carl Weathers, Craig T. Nelson, Vanity, Sharon Stone* The Adventures of Baron Munchausen* Akira* Alice...
) and Claudio Fragasso
Claudio Fragasso
Claudio Fragasso is an Italian screenwriter and film director of mostly low-budget exploitation films.- Filmmaking history :...
's La Casa 5
La Casa 5
La Casa 5 is the second sequel to La Casa 3 .-Plot:...
(1990
1990 in film
The year 1990 in film involved some significant events.-Events:* CGI technique is expanded with motion capture for CGI characters, used in Total Recall .* The first digitally-manipulated matte painting is used, in Die Hard 2....
). This is similar to what has happened in George A. Romero
George A. Romero
George Andrew Romero is a Canadian-American film director, screenwriter and editor, best known for his gruesome and satirical horror films about a hypothetical zombie apocalypse. He is nicknamed "Godfather of all Zombies." -Life and career:...
's Living Dead
Living Dead
Living Dead is a blanket term for various films, series, and other forms of media that all originated from, and includes, the seminal 1968 horror film Night of the Living Dead conceived by George A. Romero and John A. Russo...
series starting with Zombi 2
Zombi 2
Zombi 2 is a 1979 zombie horror film directed by Lucio Fulci. It is the best-known of Fulci's films and made him a horror icon. Though the title suggests this is a sequel to Zombi Zombi 2 (also known as Zombie, Island of the Living Dead, Zombie Island, Zombie Flesh Eaters and Woodoo) is a 1979...
.
Possible sequel
It has been rumored for almost two decades that there will be an Evil Dead IV. Sam Raimi has stated in an interview that he would like to make this film, as soon as he has completed work on Spider-Man 3Spider-Man 3
Spider-Man 3 is a 2007 American superhero film written and directed by Sam Raimi, with a screenplay by Ivan Raimi and Alvin Sargent. It is the third film in the Sam Raimi Spider-Man trilogy based on the fictional Marvel Comics character Spider-Man...
. In an article released May 3, 2007, he stated he was trying to get his brother Ivan Raimi, who co-wrote Army of Darkness, to write the screenplay with him. On July 26, 2008, Sam Raimi stated that Evil Dead 4 was "in the wheelhouse" during the 2008 Comic Con
Comic-Con International
San Diego Comic-Con International, also known as Comic-Con International: San Diego , and commonly known as Comic-Con or the San Diego Comic-Con, was founded as the Golden State Comic Book Convention and later the San Diego Comic Book Convention in 1970 by Shel Dorf and a group of San Diegans...
. In March 2009, Raimi confirmed that an Evil Dead script was being worked on with Ivan Raimi.
Bruce Campbell announced at San Diego Comic Con that Evil Dead 4 is a possibility, but it will not happen for several more years as Raimi was working on Spider-Man 4, but that project was cancelled in January 2010, which could mean it could be Raimi's next project after the Warcraft
Warcraft
Warcraft: Orcs & Humans is a real-time strategy game , developed by Blizzard Entertainment and published by Blizzard and Interplay Entertainment. The MS-DOS version was released in November 1994 and the Macintosh version in late 1996. Sales were fairly high, reviewers were mostly impressed, and the...
film.
So far, he's seven pages into a script for Evil Dead 4, with brother Ivan, just as he hoped: "Every time I'm with my brother Ivan, we write another page of it. It's in Detroit and in my garage." Raimi continued: "There's some dialogue. Ash being an idiot. Ash taking some abuse. Some character stuff and then some structure of Act Two. Just other possibilities for things that could happen. It's ideas, jokes, things we'd like to see."
Of course, Bruce Campbell is "firmly in mind" to star.
In the unlockable bonus content of Evil Dead: Regeneration, Bruce Campbell says the rumor of Freddy Vs. Jason Vs. Ash is "partly true", claiming that basically there are 3 separate franchises arguing "No, we're the better franchise!" "No, no you suck!" so he says with this debate constantly ongoing it might happen, but not in the foreseeable future. Sam Raimi narrated and talked over his fourth installment of the franchise at Streamy Awards
Streamy Awards
The Streamy Awards, popularly known as the Streamys, are presented annually by the International Academy of Web Television to recognize excellence in the arts and science of web television production, including directing, acting, producing, and writing. The formal ceremony at which the awards are...
2010.
In 2005, there was talk of Ash appearing in a sequel to Freddy vs. Jason
Freddy vs. Jason
Freddy vs. Jason is a 2003 American slasher film directed by Ronny Yu. The film is a crossover between the A Nightmare on Elm Street and Friday the 13th franchises...
; however, Sam Raimi
Sam Raimi
Samuel Marshall "Sam" Raimi is an American film director, producer, actor and writer. He is best known for directing cult horror films like the Evil Dead series, Darkman and Drag Me to Hell, as well as the blockbuster Spider-Man films and the producer of the successful TV series Hercules: The...
eventually decided against it. Though tempted, Raimi thought it would be unfair to the other director to dictate rules for what Ash could and could not do, which would be required as Raimi has plans for Ash in the future. As of late 2006, a new crop of rumors had begun to circulate about a team-up of Freddy Krueger
Freddy Krueger
Frederick Charles "Freddy" Krueger is a fictional, horrifying character from the Nightmare on Elm Street series of horror films. He first appears in Wes Craven's A Nightmare on Elm Street as a disfigured dream stalker who uses a glove armed with razors to kill his victims in their dreams,...
, Jason Voorhees
Jason Voorhees
Jason Voorhees is a fictional character from the Friday the 13th series of slasher films. He first appeared in Friday the 13th , as the son of camp cook-turned-murderer, Mrs. Voorhees, in which he was portrayed by Ari Lehman. Created by Victor Miller, with contributions by Ron Kurz, Sean S...
and Ash, but Raimi, New Line and Campbell have yet to make any comment. Campbell said of the original rumors that if he were to sign up, "[Ash] would have to win, or I wouldn't do it." However, Wildstorm
Wildstorm
WildStorm Productions, or simply WildStorm, published American comic books. Originally an independent company established by Jim Lee and further expanded upon in subsequent years by other creators, WildStorm became a publishing imprint of DC Comics in 1999...
/Dynamite
Dynamite Entertainment
Dynamite Entertainment is an American comic book company that primarily publishes licensed franchises of adaptations of other media. These include adaptations of film properties such as Army of Darkness, Terminator and RoboCop, literary properties such as Zorro, Dracula, Sherlock Holmes, Alice in...
have announced that they would be presenting the sequel in comic form as the six-issue mini-series Freddy vs. Jason vs. Ash
Freddy vs. Jason vs. Ash
Freddy vs. Jason vs. Ash is a six-issue comic book limited series that was released in November 2007 and ran until March 2008. It was published by Wildstorm, Dynamite Entertainment, and DC Comics. Based on the original Freddy vs. Jason vs. Ash film treatment by Jeff Katz, the story serves as a...
. Reports surfaced in July 2011 that claimed that there is a sequel in the works and it is currently being prepped.
Remake history
It had been confirmed that a remake would be made of The Evil Dead. It would have been produced by Bruce CampbellBruce Campbell
Bruce Lorne Campbell is an American film and television actor. As a cult movie actor, Campbell starred as Ashley J. "Ash" Williams in Sam Raimi's Evil Dead series of films and he has starred in many low-budget cult films such as Crimewave, Maniac Cop, Bubba Ho-tep, Escape From L.A. and Sundown:...
and Sam Raimi
Sam Raimi
Samuel Marshall "Sam" Raimi is an American film director, producer, actor and writer. He is best known for directing cult horror films like the Evil Dead series, Darkman and Drag Me to Hell, as well as the blockbuster Spider-Man films and the producer of the successful TV series Hercules: The...
, but was not to include the Ash character. It was also said that the movie would be about a group of teenagers that go to the cabin and find the book, and the similarities with the original would end there.
However, in August 2007, Bruce Campbell revealed in a radio interview that the proposed remake was "going nowhere" and "fizzled" due to extremely negative fan reaction.
More recently, rumors have suggested that a re-write of a script is being reviewed and Bruce Campbell suggested that in true style of Sam Raimi's films he would do a cameo role, jokingly suggesting that it would be a remake/sequel and Knowby's ghost would be replaced by ghostly Ash.
In July 2008, Raimi has stated that he intends to work with his brother Ivan in the development of a sequel, not a remake, and Campbell further supported this by saying that The Evil Dead remake was no longer a possibility.
In April 2011, Bruce Campbell did an AskMeAnything interview on Reddit.com, saying "Newsflash: We are remaking Evil Dead. The script is awesome. I will be one of the producers and possibly play the milk man". He added "In all honesty, we would all love to make another Evil Dead movie. When that will happen? Who can say - we're all working on other jobs right now. We're not trying to dodge anybody's questions, there just isn't that much to talk about. The remake's gonna kick ass - you have my word". On July 13, 2011 it was officially announced, via a press release, that Ghost House Pictures would be producing the upcoming remake of The Evil Dead and that Diablo Cody
Diablo Cody
Brook Busey , better known by the pen name Diablo Cody, is an American screenwriter, writer, blogger, journalist, and author. She was first known for her candid chronicling of her year as a stripper in her Pussy Ranch blog and her 2006 memoir, Candy Girl: A Year in the Life of an Unlikely Stripper...
was in the process of revising the script and the will directed by Fede Alvarez.
Indirect sequels
Bruce Campbell directed and starred in a film titled My Name Is BruceMy Name is Bruce
My Name Is Bruce is a 2007 American comedy horror film, directed, co-produced by and starring B movie cult actor Bruce Campbell. The film was written by Mark Verheiden...
. It does not continue the story of Army of Darkness but is a fictionalized portrayal of Bruce living his everyday life in which he is erroneously believed to be as heroic as the Ash character and is hired to fight an ancient spirit. The film was released to a limited number of theaters on October 26, 2008 and was released on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
and Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc
Blu-ray Disc is an optical disc storage medium designed to supersede the DVD format. The plastic disc is 120 mm in diameter and 1.2 mm thick, the same size as DVDs and CDs. Blu-ray Discs contain 25 GB per layer, with dual layer discs being the norm for feature-length video discs...
on February 10, 2009.
Video games
There have so far been five Evil Dead video games:- The Evil DeadThe Evil Dead (Commodore 64 game)The Evil Dead is a survival horror and adventure game produced by Palace Software for the Commodore 64. A version was also written for the ZX Spectrum but this was never released on its own and eventually appeared free with the Spectrum version of Cauldron...
(1984) for Commodore 64Commodore 64The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
and ZX SpectrumZX SpectrumThe ZX Spectrum is an 8-bit personal home computer released in the United Kingdom in 1982 by Sinclair Research Ltd... - Evil Dead: Hail to the KingEvil Dead: Hail to the KingEvil Dead: Hail to the King is a survival horror game for the PlayStation and Dreamcast video game consoles and PC.-Plot:Eight years after his adventures in the Army of Darkness movie, Ashley "Ash" Williams finds himself haunted by nightmares of deadites...
(2000) for PlayStation, Dreamcast, and PCPersonal computerA personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator... - Evil Dead: A Fistful of BoomstickEvil Dead: A Fistful of BoomstickEvil Dead: A Fistful of Boomstick is a video game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox video game consoles. It is based on the movie trilogy The Evil Dead. It is set twenty years after the events of the trilogy, twelve years after Jenny, Ash's girlfriend from Evil Dead: Hail to the King, has been killed...
(2003) for PlayStation 2PlayStation 2The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
and XboxXboxThe Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console... - Evil Dead: RegenerationEvil Dead: RegenerationEvil Dead: Regeneration is a video game for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox video game consoles and PC. It is based on the movie trilogy The Evil Dead and puts the character in similar environment, but with new weapons and traditions...
(2005) for PlayStation 2, Xbox, and PC - Army of Darkness Defense (2011) for iPhoneIPhoneThe iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
, iPod TouchIPod TouchThe iPod Touch is a portable media player, personal digital assistant, handheld game console, and Wi-Fi mobile device designed and marketed by Apple Inc. The iPod Touch adds the multi-touch graphical user interface to the iPod line...
, and iPadIPadThe iPad is a line of tablet computers designed, developed and marketed by Apple Inc., primarily as a platform for audio-visual media including books, periodicals, movies, music, games, and web content. The iPad was introduced on January 27, 2010 by Apple's then-CEO Steve Jobs. Its size and... - Evil Dead: The Game (2011) for iPhoneIPhoneThe iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
, iPod TouchIPod TouchThe iPod Touch is a portable media player, personal digital assistant, handheld game console, and Wi-Fi mobile device designed and marketed by Apple Inc. The iPod Touch adds the multi-touch graphical user interface to the iPod line...
, and iPadIPadThe iPad is a line of tablet computers designed, developed and marketed by Apple Inc., primarily as a platform for audio-visual media including books, periodicals, movies, music, games, and web content. The iPad was introduced on January 27, 2010 by Apple's then-CEO Steve Jobs. Its size and...
Dark Horse Comics
In 1992, Dark Horse ComicsDark Horse Comics
Dark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book and manga publisher.Dark Horse Comics was founded in 1986 by Mike Richardson in Milwaukie, Oregon, with the concept of establishing an ideal atmosphere for creative professionals. Richardson started out by opening his first comic book...
produced a mini-series adaptation of Army of Darkness adapted and illustrated by John Bolton. A trade paperback
Trade paperback (comics)
In comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...
of this series was released by Dynamite Entertainment
Dynamite Entertainment
Dynamite Entertainment is an American comic book company that primarily publishes licensed franchises of adaptations of other media. These include adaptations of film properties such as Army of Darkness, Terminator and RoboCop, literary properties such as Zorro, Dracula, Sherlock Holmes, Alice in...
on September 25, 2006.
In 2008, Dark Horse revisited the franchise with a four issue adaptation of the The Evil Dead written by Mark Verheiden
Mark Verheiden
Mark Verheiden is an American television, movie, and comic book writer. He is a co-executive producer for the television series Falling Skies for DreamWorks Television and the TNT Network.-Career:...
and once again illustrated by John Bolton.
Dynamite Entertainment
In 2004, Dynamite EntertainmentDynamite Entertainment
Dynamite Entertainment is an American comic book company that primarily publishes licensed franchises of adaptations of other media. These include adaptations of film properties such as Army of Darkness, Terminator and RoboCop, literary properties such as Zorro, Dracula, Sherlock Holmes, Alice in...
acquired the license to publish titles based on Army of Darkness and, in conjunction with Devil's Due Publishing
Devil's Due Publishing
Devil's Due Publishing is an independent comic book publishers in the United States. Based in Chicago, Illinois, DDP is best known for its wide selection of genres, including licensed and original creator-owned properties that populate its monthly comic book series and graphic novels.Though...
, released the Army of Darkness: Ashes 2 Ashes mini-series. A second mini-series, Army of Darkness: Shop till You Drop Dead
Shop Till You Drop Dead
Army of Darkness: Shop till You Drop Dead is a four-part comic book spin-off published by Devils Due Publishing & Dynamite Entertainment, continuing the comic book saga of The Evil Dead series...
followed in 2005. Later that year, Dynamite separated itself from Devil's Due and began focusing entirely on self-published titles featuring the Army of Darkness franchise. This included an ongoing series that began in 2005 and saw Ash battling other horror icon such as Herbert West
Herbert West
Herbert West is a fictional character created by H. P. Lovecraft for his short story "Herbert West—Reanimator", first published in 1922. There have been several adaptations of the story including Herbert West as played by Jeffrey Combs in the 1985 Re-Animator movie and its two sequels, Bride...
and Dracula
Dracula
Dracula is an 1897 novel by Irish author Bram Stoker.Famous for introducing the character of the vampire Count Dracula, the novel tells the story of Dracula's attempt to relocate from Transylvania to England, and the battle between Dracula and a small group of men and women led by Professor...
. The series lasted thirteen issues before being rebooted with a second volume in 2007. The second series lasted twenty-seven issues before coming to an end. Over the years, there have also been several one-shot specials as well as crossovers with a wide variety of characters such as, Marvel Zombies
Marvel Zombies
Marvel Zombies is a five-issue limited series published from December 2005 to April 2006 by Marvel Comics. The series was written by Robert Kirkman with art by Sean Phillips and covers by Arthur Suydam. It was the first series in the Marvel Zombies series of related stories...
, Darkman
Darkman
Darkman is a 1990 superhero action film directed by Sam Raimi. It is based on a short story Raimi wrote that paid homage to Universal's horror films of the 1930s...
, Freddy Krueger
Freddy Krueger
Frederick Charles "Freddy" Krueger is a fictional, horrifying character from the Nightmare on Elm Street series of horror films. He first appears in Wes Craven's A Nightmare on Elm Street as a disfigured dream stalker who uses a glove armed with razors to kill his victims in their dreams,...
, Jason Voorhees
Jason Voorhees
Jason Voorhees is a fictional character from the Friday the 13th series of slasher films. He first appeared in Friday the 13th , as the son of camp cook-turned-murderer, Mrs. Voorhees, in which he was portrayed by Ari Lehman. Created by Victor Miller, with contributions by Ron Kurz, Sean S...
, Xena
Xena
Xena is a fictional character from Robert Tapert's Xena: Warrior Princess franchise. She first appeared in the 1995–1999 television series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, before going on to appear in Xena: Warrior Princess TV show and subsequent comic book of the same name...
, Danger Girl
Danger Girl
Danger Girl is an American comic book series created by J. Scott Campbell and Andy Hartnell. The comic features a group of female secret agents led by a mentor named Deuce. The series follows the James Bond and Indiana Jones action-adventure formula, with the Danger Girls being an homage to the...
and even Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
.
Musical
The production team of George ReinblattGeorge Reinblatt
George Reinblatt is a comedy writer from Toronto, Canada, best known for writing the off-Broadway show Evil Dead: The Musical....
, Christopher Bond and Frank Cipolla
Frank Cipolla
Frank Cipolla is an award winning American television and radio news broadcaster and author.-Early life:Frank Cipolla grew up in Queens, NY where he graduated from Saint John's University...
recently created an Off Broadway show titled Evil Dead: The Musical, based on the film series. Its New York run was directed by Bond and Hinton Battle
Hinton Battle
Hinton Battle is an American actor, dancer, and dance instructor. He has won three Tony Awards, all in the category of Featured Actor in a Musical...
, who also choreographed the show. Ryan Ward played the part of Ash. Tying in with the midnight movie plot of a group of friends visiting a wooded cabin and unleashing untold evil, performances did not start until 11 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Previews began October 1 and the show opened November 1 at the New World Stages
New World Stages
New World Stages, originally Dodger Stages, is an Off-Broadway venue. The architects were Beyer, Blinder, and Belle. The theatre designers were Sachs Morgan, and the interior designer was Klara Zieglerova.It is currently home to 6 shows:* Rent...
. It was announced on January 31, 2007 that Evil Dead: The Musicals New York production at New World Stages would close on February 17, 2007. Toronto producers announced a new Toronto production of the show, also starring Ryan Ward, at the Diesel Playhouse. The new production started its running May 1, 2007 and has been announced to end on September 8, 2007.