Fede Alvarez’s grisly Evil Dead remake had us equal parts grossed out and engrossed, but Sam Raimi’s ever-shifting plans for the future of the horror franchise, which will now include a TV series, might mean that we’ll never see a direct follow-up to that film.
To be clear, that would be a real shame. Evil Dead, among its other strengths, worked to establish Jane Levy’s Mia as the new series’ protagonist – and the dramatic chops the Suburgatory alum showcased in the movie had me completely behind that, at least until Bruce Campbell’s Ash came into contact with her. But recent comments from Levy to AITH suggest Mia may end up being a one-and-done:
“I don’t think they’re gonna make it. I mean, they’re always coming up with a new thing- now I hear they’re making a TV show. I was like, what? [Laughs] I honestly don’t know, but it doesn’t seem like there’s going to be an EVIL DEAD 2 anytime soon. At least, not with me in it.”
Now, Levy straight-up admits to not having any insight into what conversations are happening between Raimi and Alvarez behind closed office doors. She did add though that things could change very quickly with regard to Evil Dead 2, just based on the fact that both directors like surprising their fans. Levy said with a laugh, “I think they just like exciting their fans and confusing them.”
Raimi is supposedly working on Army of Darkness 2, though the lack of news on that front may mean he’s putting all his Dead eggs into the in-development TV series, which would star Campbell as Ashley J. Williams, loyal S-Mart employee.
Sadly, if the TV series takes priority, Mia’s story in an Evil Dead 2 might end up getting dropped permanently. It would terrific to see Ash’s storyline converge with Mia’s, as was hinted at in the movie and by its post-credits stinger, but no one seems to want to rush that story forward. It’s worth noting that the original Evil Dead II came six years after the first, and Army of Darkness five years after that – so Raimi and co. certainly still have plenty of time put an Evil Dead 2 into development.
As always, we’ll keep you posted, but would you rather see this TV series with Campbell, a direct Evil Dead sequel with Levy, an Army of Darkness 2, or a title merging the narratives of Mia and Ash? Let us know below!
