The legacy of the Evil Dead franchise is still very much alive. An Evil Dead 4 is going to be made in this thirty-nine-year-old horror tale, which was created by Sam Raimi. Legendary Bruce Campbell has revealed new details about what to expect from the next installment.
In an interview with Empire, the franchise leading man Bruce Campbell confirmed that a fourth entry, titled Evil Dead Now, is a go. The writer/director of hit thriller The Hole in the Ground, Lee Cronin, has apparently been “handpicked” by Sam Raimi himself to write and direct this film. Raimi and Bruce Campbell will serve as producers.
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The first Evil Dead, a supernatural horror film written and directed by Sam Raimi, debuted in 1981 and became an instant horror classic that spawned a long franchise consisting of a trilogy, a remake, and a television series. The central story revolves around the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis, an ancient Sumerian text which wreaks havoc upon a group of cabin inhabitants in a remote wooded area.
Both Raimi and Campbell made their careers with the original Evil Dead trilogy. The first Evil Dead is an ultra lo-fi ambitious cabin-in-the-woods horror slasher. The 1987 sequel/soft reboot, Evil Dead 2, is an uproarious and slapstick horror-comedy, followed by Army of Darkness, a medieval swashbuckling fantasy-horror that delved even deeper into absurdity in 1992, which are all written and directed by Raimi. Campbell’s Ashley Joanna “Ash” Williams is the only character to appear in every installment.
Evil Dead 4, Or Evil Dead Now
The franchise was resurrected in 2013, with a hard-edged Evil Dead, both a remake and a loose continuation of the series directed by Fede Álvarez and produced by Raimi and Campbell. The movie surprisingly turned out to be one of the great horror films of the last ten years. Campbell didn’t return for the remake but reprised his role in the small-screen adventures of Ash Vs. Evil Dead, which debuted in 2015 on Starz, where it ran for three seasons.
Speaking about the new film, Bruce Campbell explained:
“We’re just getting off the phone with Lee Cronin, who is writing and directing the next Evil Dead. It’s called Evil Dead Now. Sam handpicked Lee – he did a cool movie called The Hole In The Ground. We’re going to get that sucker out as soon as practical.”
It was previously stated that production would begin by the end of this year, but that now seems highly unlikely with things considered. However, it seems like Campbell is involved only behind the camera. Having played the monster hunter Ash for such a long time – including in the aforementioned Ash vs. Evil Dead show, the actor confirmed-he’s hanging up his old chainsaw for this next chapter. By the sounds of things, this new thriller will center on a female protagonist.
“From this point forward, they kind of have to stand on their own. Which is fine. And liberating,” Campbell confirms. “You could have different heroes, different heroines in this case. This one’s gonna be a little more dynamic. We just want to keep the series current. And the mantra, really, is that our heroes and heroines are just regular people. That’s what we’re going to continue.”
Indie director Lee Cronin had been directing horror shorts before breaking out with his feature-length debut “The Hole in the Ground” in 2019. It was a well-received horror-thriller making him an interesting choice for this project and Raimi himself choosing Cronin, says a lot.
An all-new Evil Dead movie being shaped is exciting news for fans. Seems like there was still life left in the old cabin in the woods even after four decades since the first film. Once again the Necronomicon will be opened releasing demons and spirits into the mortal realm. The release date of the movie is not announced yet, but this is definitely a positive update and more announcements will be made soon.
What do you think of this news? Are you excited to revisit the Evil Dead franchise again? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below and be sure to come back to The Illuminerdi for more horror news.
