‘Evil Dead Rise’ a Go at New Line, Shooting this Summer
The Evil Dead refuse to stay… dead.
Rumors regarding another revival of the Evil Dead property had been floating around for a while, but nothing was solid. Well, it turns out that Sam Raimi has been actively working in the shadows to bring back the franchise that made him a big name in Hollywood. Evil Dead Rise is coming to HBO Max sooner than you think.
It appears that the new film will be its own thing, much like Fede Alvarez’s Evil Dead (2013), which included a brief credits-scene cameo by Ash Williams and that was it. That reboot received favorable reviews and went down as one of the best horror remakes to grace the big screen, but a sequel never happened. Shortly afterwards, Ash vs. Evil Dead, a TV series which followed the events of the three original films and was led by Bruce Campbell himself, was announced. It ran on Starz for three (amazing, I must say) seasons before being cancelled, although its final episode, while a cliffhanger, didn’t feel like a bad note to end the show on.
Irish filmmaker Lee Cronin, who got some decent recognition for his 2019 directorial debut The Hole in the Ground, is writing and directing for New Line. Robert Tapert, producer of the 1981 original, returns to produce, with Raimi and original star Bruce Campbell executive producing. The film will shoot in New Zealand in June, so pre-production has been incredibly silent. The film will take the undead action “away from the cabin in the woods and into the city as two estranged sisters’ reunion is cut short when flesh-possessing demons thrust them into a battle for survival.” The film is led by Alyssa Sutherland, known for The Mist (TV series) and Vikings, and Lily Sullivan, whose credits include the films Picnic at Hanging Rock and Jungle.
As stated before, the film is being developed with HBO Max in mind, so a theatrical release is not confirmed at this point. If production goes smoothly, it will most likely arrive sometime in 2022.
Francisco J. Ruiz is that guy who has watched Jurassic Park a thousand times and loves Star Wars. His hunger for movies is only matched by his love for video games. He graduated in English Studies from the University of Malaga, in Spain. As he keeps writing about what he enjoys (and doesn’t) for websites all over, he’s continuing his studies.
