Evil Dead Rise Director Weighs In on HBO Max Shakeups and Release Date Worries

By Patrick Cavanaugh

Over the last week, there have been major shakeups at HBO Max, with highly anticipated projects like Batgirl and Scoob!: Holiday Haunt getting scrapped completely, even after production had wrapped. This has left fans wondering about the status of other planned HBO Max releases, resulting in Evil Dead Rise director Lee Cronin taking to Twitter to share a statement about "keeping the faith." With other HBO Max releases having much higher price tags, it's unclear if it would be less of a gamble for the streamer to move forward with such a release, or if it would likely come with fewer possible gains, seeing that project also getting the ax. Stay tuned for details on Evil Dead Rise.

"Keep the faith," Cronin shared on Twitter, while also using the #EvilDeadRise hashtag and blood-drop emojis.

Sadly, what is unclear from Cronin's message is whether he is assuring fans to keep the faith and that they can breathe a sigh of relief that the project's future is in good hands or if he's asking for moral support that the film won't be abandoned entirely, especially this close to the finish line.

Part of what is worrying about the recent revelations at HBO Max is that projects that were intended to be released on the streamers will just be abandoned entirely, as opposed to pivoting to a different release strategy, such as a traditional theatrical release. Complicating things further is that producer and longtime star Bruce Campbell shared just weeks ago that early reactions to the new film were so promising that a theatrical release was being considered.

"We just had a preview that went ... That was very high ratings. They were potentially going to stream it on HBO Max, but it might go theatrical. Maybe in the fall," Campbell revealed to CBR.

Campbell starred in the original trilogy of Evil Dead films and in 2013, served as a producer on a reboot of the concept. While that film had a relatively positive reception, it failed to revive the cult-classic series. In 2015, Campbell reprised his role of Ash Williams for the STARZ series Ash vs. Evil Dead, which would run for three seasons. That series' underwhelming viewership numbers prevented it from being renewed, with Campbell confirming he was officially retiring from his on-screen role.

Stay tuned for details on the future of Evil Dead Rise.

Are you hoping the film still gets released? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

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