Evil Dead Rise: Sam Raimi Teases the Terror of New Sequel

With Sam Raimi having directed the original trilogy of Evil Dead films, all subsequent filmmakers have their work cut out for them when it comes to comparing to those three films, though Raimi himself recently confirmed to fans that the upcoming Evil Dead Rise is "terrifying." While Raimi might have left the director's chair behind, he has remained involved in the franchise as a producer with both the 2013 reboot and the upcoming Evil Dead Rise, while also having developed three seasons of Ash vs. Evil Dead. Evil Dead Rise doesn't currently have a release date though is expected to debut on HBO Max later this year.

"I've seen a rough cut [of Evil Dead Rise], a medium-fine cut, and a fine cut," Raimi shared with /Film. "There's probably a few changes that Lee Cronin is making that I haven't seen, but it's great. It's terrifying and it's going to knock people's socks off."

Rather than merely signing off on Cronin developing the sequel, Raimi personally endorsed the filmmaker and supported his concept for the new sequel, which was thanks in large part to his previous film The Hole in the Ground. 

"He had always liked Evil Dead, and I loved The Hole in the Ground. And that picture was brought to the executives that I work with and they showed it to me and I thought, this is really a great director," Raimi pointed out. "And we met and we talked and he said he really liked The Evil Dead. And I said, then why don't you make the new one? I think you're just the kind [of] guy I'd like to do it. He said, great. Let's go. We put together a script and we gave notes and he made some changes and then we raised money for the movie and he went down to New Zealand to shoot it with my partner, Rob Tapert. Now Bruce Campbell is working with him in post-production sound."

The film's synopsis reads, "In the fifth Evil Dead film, a road-weary Beth pays an overdue visit to her older sister Ellie, who is raising three kids on her own in a cramped L.A. apartment. The sisters' reunion is cut short by the discovery of a mysterious book deep in the bowels of Ellie's building, giving rise to flesh-possessing demons, and thrusting Beth into a primal battle for survival as she is faced with the most nightmarish version of motherhood imaginable."

Evil Dead Rise will be on HBO Max later this year.  

Are you looking forward to the new movie? Let us know in the comments below or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!