The horrors of the Necronomicon Ex Mortis may soon reach your home. At an event being held at San Diego Comic Con, Sam Raimi announced that he was working with his brother Ivan to write a television series based on their horror franchise "The Evil Dead." Bombshell number two for Raimi fans was that the original series star Bruce Campbell would be starring in the TV show.
Campbell's participation comes at a surprise because even though Campbell was a big part of the franchise from the beginning, he was only credited as a producer on the 2013 remake of "The Evil Dead."
Raimi, Campbell and friends made the original film "Evil Dead" in 1981 with a barebones budget. Campbell plays a man named Ash who brings his girlfriend Linda to a cabin for a weekend getaway, but they soon unleash an evil force that possesses her. "Evil Dead II" was made in 1987, with a bigger budget and capitalized on the cult following of the original. Ash continues to fight against the demonic force that possesses people in the forest. In 1992, the crew got back together to make a third film, called "The Army of Darkness." Ash is sent back in time to medieval times to face an army of zombies, in a more comedic entry for the series.
The 2013 remake is about a group of friends who stay at a cabin and resurrect a demonic force that possesses one of them. With the announcement that Campbell would be starring in the television show, it is likely that this remake would be forgotten and the "Evil Dead" show would continue the storyline from the films. Though, Raimi and friends could go the other way to surprise people and somehow incorporate the latest film into the original trilogy's timeline.
There have been other spin-offs of the horror series in the past. There has been several "Evil Dead' video games, with the most recent having been released in 2011 for iOS devices. Some of the console games even starred Bruce Campbell reprising his role as Ash. There have been several "Evil Dead" comic book series, as well. There is even an "Evil Dead: The Musical" that has been in production since 2006.
Sam Raimi made the surprise appearance at San Diego Comic Con to receive the Inkpot Award, for "contributions to the worlds of comics, science fiction and fantasy, film, television, animation, and fandom services."
Photo: Gage Skidmore
