The Evil Deadwas a game-changing horror movie upon its release in 1981. It combined horror and excessive gore with a mischievous sense of fun, eventually spawning a franchise of five (and counting) movies, various video games, a musical and a television spin-off series.
Related:Evil Dead: The Three Necronomicons, Explained
The history of theEvil Deadseries is a long and bumpy one, with various mishaps and challenges faced by the movie makers along the way. Here’s a look into thestrange history of the movies and series, unearthing some interesting bites of ghoulish trivia.
Within The Woodswas a short filmdirector Sam Raimishot with his friend Bruce Campbell back in 1978. Made for only $1600, it was designed to test the skills of those involved, hoping that it would lead to something bigger.
Sam Raimi actually managed to getWithin The Woodsshown at a local theater, on the same night as a showing ofThe Rocky Horror Picture Show. It was very well-received, and gave the cast and crew a lot of hope for future projects.
9There Were Several Other Suggested Titles For The Movie
Before settling onThe Evil Dead, the movie went through several other titles. Some were very on-the-nose, others a little dull (one investor told Sam Raimi that nobody would want to watch a film with ‘Book’ in the title, when Raimi suggested ‘Book of the Dead’).
Other working titles forThe Evil Deadwere: ‘Blood Flood’, ‘These Bitches are Witches’, ‘Fe-Monsters’ and ‘The Evil Dead Men and the Evil Dead Women’.
8Stephen King Loved The Evil Dead
Upon seeing the movie at the Cannes Film Festival, legendaryhorror writer Stephen Kingwrote a glowing review ofThe Evil Deadin Twilight Zone Magazine. He described it as being“the most ferociously original film of the year”.
Related:The Best Stephen King Horror Movies, Ranked
This praise boostedThe Evil Dead’s profile no end, and boosted it to cult status, even though it had been billedas a ‘video nasty’in the UK. It’s this popularity that encouraged Sam Raimi and co to do a sequel six years later (and King also had a hand in that).
The Evil Deadhad a huge impact on Peter Jackson. Before theOscar-nominated directormade the incredibleThe Lord of the Ringstrilogy, he directed some extremely gory movies clearly inspired by theEvil Deadmovies. BothDead AliveandBad Tasteare cheap, low-budget and full of visceral thrills.
Jackson once said ofThe Evil Dead: “It made me think, God, I could do that. I was old enough, I had a 16mm camera, and here comes a horror movie that somebody of similar age made with a 16mm camera.”
Evil Dead 2isboth a remake and a sequelof the original movie. This is because the producers were unable to use footage from the first film to act as a ‘recap’ at the start of the sequel.
Instead, they just remade the first film but changed things slightly due to time and budget constraints. For instance, in the first movie five people go to the cabin in the woods. InEvil Dead 2, it’s only Ash and Linda.
5Army Of Darkness Was Almost A Partial Remake, Too
Evil Dead: Army of Darknesswas almost going to be a partial remake of the first two movies. A draft script delved into Ash’s life before he encountered the Deadites, and wouldn’t have seen him time traveling until halfway through the movie.
When Universal Pictures greenlit a direct sequel toEvil Dead 2, Sam Raimi eschewed this idea and had the medieval action starting almost right away.
Approved by Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell,Evil Dead: The Musicalstarted in 2003 in Toronto and was a surprise hit. It garnered rave reviews and was even compared toThe Rocky Horror Show! A cast recording was released in 2007.
Related:The Success Of Rocky Horror Overshadowed Another Great ’70s Horror Comedy Musical
Combining elements of all three original movies, the show was full of catchy songs and gory moments. Indeed, a lot of fake blood was used and audiences members near the front of the stage were warned that they were in the ‘splash zone’.
Fede Álvarez’s bleak 2013 movie was aloose retelling of the original, but it was very much designed to be a part of the same universe, rather than a remake. Ellen Sandweiss reprized her role as Cheryl Williams from the first film in a voice cameo, and archive footage of Bob Dorian as Professor Raymond Knowby was used.
Ash also appearsin a post-credits sequence, although there was an even longer one intended. In the cut scene, Ash is driving by in his truck when he comes across a blood-covered Mia.
The Evil Deadmovies are generally known for the gallons of blood used during filming. It’s always real, too, with little to no CGI being used to ‘cheat’.Evil Dead Risedirector Lee Cronin is staying true to the tradition with the new movie.
Apparently, so much fake blood was needed that they had to hire an industrial kitchen to produce the necessary amount. Allegedly, over 1700 gallons of the red stuff was used during filming.
1Sam Raimi’s Favorite Car Appears In Most Of The Movies
Sam Raimi’s beloved car the 1973 Oldsmobile Delta 88 has appeared in all of his movies, and is a constant in theEvil Deadfranchise. It’s the car that Ash drives (even going back in time with him inArmy of Darkness), and appears again inAsh Vs The Evil Dead.
The Oldsmobile has a cameo in the 2013 movie, and although it’s not present inEvil Dead Rise, writer and director Lee Cronin revealed that the chainsaw wielded by Beth is the same color as Raimi’s car. A little Easter Egg for the fans.
