Evil Dead

The Evil Dead series
Directed by	Sam Raimi (The Evil Dead, Evil Dead II, Army of Darkness) Fede Alvarez (Evil Dead)
Written by	The Evil Dead: Sam Raimi Evil Dead II: Sam Raimi Scott Spiegel Army of Darkness: Sam Raimi Ivan Raimi Evil Dead: Fede Alvarez Rodo Sayagues Diablo Cody (uncredited)
Produced by	Sam Raimi Bruce Campbell Robert Tapert Dino De Laurentiis (Army of Darkness)
Starring	Bruce Campbell (The Evil Dead, Evil Dead II, Army of Darkness) Jane Levy (Evil Dead)
Cinematography	Tim Philo (Within the Woods and The Evil Dead) Peter Deming (Evil Dead II) Bill Pope (Army of Darkness) Aaron Morton (Evil Dead)
Edited by	Edna Euth Paul (The Evil Dead) Kaye Davis (Evil Dead II) Bob Murawski (Army of Darkness) R.O.C. Sandstorm (Army of Darkness) Bryan Shaw (Evil Dead)
Music by	Joseph LoDuca (The Evil Dead, Evil Dead II, Army of Darkness) Danny Elfman ("March of the Dead" theme for Army of Darkness) Roque Baños (Evil Dead)
Production companies	Renaissance Pictures (The Evil Dead, Evil Dead II, Army of Darkness) Ghost House Pictures (Evil Dead) FilmDistrict (Evil Dead)
Distributed by	None (Within the Woods) New Line Cinema (The Evil Dead) Rosbud Pictures (Evil Dead II) Universal Pictures (Army of Darkness) TriStar Pictures (Evil Dead)
Release date	1978–Present
Running time	Within the Woods: 32 minutes The Evil Dead: 85 minutes Evil Dead II: 84 minutes Army of Darkness: 81 minutes (Theatrical Cut) 89 minutes (International Cut) 96 minutes (Director's Cut) Evil Dead: 92 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$34.000.000 (est.) (all four films)
Box office	$46.700.000 (est.)

The Evil Dead is an American horror film franchise created by Sam Raimi. The films revolve around the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis, an ancient Sumerian text which wreaks havoc upon a group of cabin inhabitants in a wooded area in Tennessee. The protagonist, Ashley J. "Ash" Williams (Bruce Campbell) is the only character to appear in every installment of the original trilogy. The original series includes The Evil Dead (1981), Evil Dead II (1987), and Army of Darkness (1992), all written and directed by Raimi, produced by Robert G. Tapert, and starring Campbell. The franchise has since expanded into other formats such as video games and comic books, and a musical opened in Toronto in 2003 containing material from all three films.

The franchise was resurrected in 2013 with Evil Dead, both a reboot and as a loose continuation of the series directed by Fede Alvarez and produced by Raimi, Campbell and Tapert. Raimi stated that three other installments of the franchise are considered: a direct sequel to the original trilogy currently entitled Army of Darkness 2 directed by himself and starring Campbell, a sequel to the 2013 version entitled Evil Dead 2 and directed once again by Alvarez, and a seventh and final film which would merge the narratives of both chronologies.

Development

Within the Woods

In January 1978 Bruce Campbell 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 did not mind stating that "I could always move back home." Tapert feared a career 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 1978, 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 Raimi, 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. Andrea's cat fell asleep on Raimi's face without even disturbing him, and Raimi, who is allergic to cats, had his eyes swollen shut.

Films

The Evil Dead

Main article: The Evil Dead

Released in 1981, this is the first film in the series. It introduces the series' protagonist, Ash, and the Book of the Dead and what it brings with it.

Evil Dead II

Main article: 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

Main article: 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.

Evil Dead (2013 film)

Main article: Evil Dead (2013 film)

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.[13] In July 2008, Raimi 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. More recent 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 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".[14] 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".[15] On August 1, 2012, it was announced that in honor of the remake due out in 2013, The Evil Dead is coming to the world's largest Halloween event, Knott's Berry Farm's "Halloween Haunt" in Buena Park, CA, also known as Knott's Scary Farm. Knott's has a large log flume ride that goes in and around a large mountain, where the movie will be created for guest to experience the terror firsthand. It had been confirmed that a remake would be made of The Evil Dead. It will be produced by Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi, but will not include the Ash character. It was also said that the movie would be about a group of teenagers who go to the cabin and find the book, and the similarities with the original would end there.[16] 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, with Diablo Cody in the process of revising the script and Fede Alvarez chosen as the director.[17] Actor Shiloh Fernandez is reported cast as the main lead role of David.[18] Bloody Disgusting has reported that Lily Collins is in the lead role as Mia who is a female version of Ash, but on January 24, 2012, Collins has dropped out of the role. [19][20] On February 3, 2012 it was announced that actress Jane Levy, star of the television series Suburgatory would be replacing Collins in the lead role as Mia.[21] Lou Taylor Pucci, Elizabeth Blackmore and Jessica Lucas have joined the cast for the horror film.[22][23] Fede Alvarez confirmed the film will use practical effects like the original film and no CGI was used in the scenes shown in the trailer at New York Comic Con. He has stated the special effects in the film are similar to magic and illusion tricks. An official trailer for the film was released on October 24, 2012. Many familiar elements of the original film are revealed, such as the possessed arm and the infamous tree rape scene, as well as new scenes involving blood-rain and one of the possessed characters splitting their tongue with a utility knife. The trailer was given a red-band status for its excessive use of gore and profanity. On March 8, 2013, the film held its world premiere at the SXSW Film Festival in Austin, Texas. The film was received with generally favorable reviews.

Evil Dead 2

At the premiere event at SXSW, Alvarez announced that a sequel is in the works.

Army of Darkness 2

Sam Raimi confirmed plans to write Evil Dead 4 with his brother; it was later specified that this film would be Army of Darkness 2.

TBA Crossover

At a WonderCon panel in March 2013, Campbell and Alvarez stated that their ultimate plan was for Alvarez's Evil Dead 2 and Raimi's Army of Darkness 2 to be followed by a seventh film which would merge the narratives of Ash and Mia.

Further films

Ash vs. Freddy vs. Jason

During "The Untold Saga of The Evil Dead" Documentary" Rob Tapert had stated that New Line had said they wanted to do Ash vs Freddy vs Jason: "We thought about it for one second but we knew we would have totally trashed the franchise in doing that, in that there would be no reason to reunite Bruce and Sam for Evil Dead 4 whatever that would be nor would there be any reason to go back and reinvent the original Evil Dead with a hot new filmmaker". A comic book series was produced based on this concept.

Unofficial sequels

In Italy, 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 {aka Beyond Darkness) (1990). This is similar to what has happened in George A. Romero's Living Dead series starting with Zombi 2. House II: The Second Story (1987) and The Horror Show (1989) were retitled La Casa 6 and La Casa 7 respectively in their Italian releases.

Awards Pictures, a company that attempted to begin a new line of movies in the series in 2004, announced plans in May 2012 to film an Evil Dead 4, one that has nothing to do with the original films. Because of this, Sam Raimi sued Awards Pictures in an attempt to stop them from making said film, due to his own plan to someday film one himself. In August 2012, U.S. District Judge Dale Fischer entered a default judgment that “permanently enjoined” Awards Pictures from using the names Evil Dead, Evil Dead: Genesis of the Necronomicon, Evil Dead: Genesis of the Necronomicon, Part 2 or Evil Dead: Consequences “as or as part of the title of a motion picture, television program, video game, play, book or any other form of entertainment provided or to be provided through any media.”

Indirect sequels

Bruce Campbell directed and starred in a film titled My Name Is Bruce. 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.

Video games

There have been six Evil Dead video games:

• The Evil Dead (1984) for Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum
• Evil Dead: Hail to the King (2000) for PlayStation, Dreamcast, and PC
• Evil Dead: A Fistful of Boomstick (2003) for PlayStation 2 and Xbox
• Evil Dead: Regeneration (2005) for PlayStation 2, Xbox, and PC
• Army of Darkness Defense (2011) for iOS and Android
• Evil Dead: The Game (2011) for iOS

Ash Williams will also appear as a non-playable character in Telltale Games' upcoming game Poker Night 2.

Comic books

Main article: Army of Darkness (comics)

Dark Horse Comics

In 1992, Dark Horse Comics 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.

Dynamite Entertainment

In 2004, Dynamite Entertainment 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.

Musical

Main article: Evil Dead: The Musical

The production team of George Reinblatt, 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 Musical's 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.