Ash Vs Evil Dead
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''Ash vs Evil Dead'' is an American comedy horror television series developed by Sam Raimi, Ivan Raimi, and Tom Spezialy for Starz. The series is set in the '' Evil Dead'' universe created by Raimi, with Bruce Campbell reprising his role as
Ash Williams Ashley Joanna "Ash" Williams is a fictional character and the protagonist of the '' Evil Dead'' franchise. Created by Sam Raimi, he is portrayed by Bruce Campbell and is the only character to appear in each entry of the series, including a po ...
from the film series. Ray Santiago, Dana DeLorenzo, and
Lucy Lawless Lucille Frances Lawless (; born 29 March 1968) is a New Zealand actress and director. She is best known for her roles as Xena in the television series ''Xena: Warrior Princess'', as Number Three (Battlestar Galactica), D'Anna Biers on the re-im ...
also star. The series premiered on October 31, 2015. Three days before the series's premiere, Starz renewed it for a second season, which premiered on October 2, 2016. Starz renewed it for a third season, which premiered on February 25, 2018. The series was canceled after three seasons on April 29, 2018; however, in July 2022, Campbell confirmed that an animated revival was in active development.


Premise

The series is set approximately 30 years after the first three '' Evil Dead'' films and serves as a sequel to that trilogy.
Ash Williams Ashley Joanna "Ash" Williams is a fictional character and the protagonist of the '' Evil Dead'' franchise. Created by Sam Raimi, he is portrayed by Bruce Campbell and is the only character to appear in each entry of the series, including a po ...
works at the "Value Stop" as a simple stock boy. Also working at the store is his friend Pablo and the object of Pablo's affections, Kelly. Ash has seemingly done very little with his life since returning from 1300 AD at the end of ''
Army of Darkness ''Army of Darkness'' is a 1992 American dark fantasy comedy film directed, co-written, and co-edited by Sam Raimi. The film is the third installment in the Evil Dead, ''Evil Dead'' film series and the sequel to ''Evil Dead II'' (1987). Starring ...
'', and the beginning of the series sees him living in a trailer and drinking alone in bars. However, Ash must soon renounce his routine existence and become a hero once more by taking up arms and facing the titular Evil Dead. Pablo and Kelly decide to join him on his quest to save humanity.


Cast


Main

* Bruce Campbell as
Ash Williams Ashley Joanna "Ash" Williams is a fictional character and the protagonist of the '' Evil Dead'' franchise. Created by Sam Raimi, he is portrayed by Bruce Campbell and is the only character to appear in each entry of the series, including a po ...
: Ash has changed in the 30 years since ''Army of Darkness''. In an interview with ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...
'', Campbell stated, "Ash has survivor's guilt. You could have a heyday with his PTSD. He's a war vet. He doesn't want to talk about it, and he'll lie about that stump on his hand to impress the ladies. This is a guy who's got some issues. He's emotionally stunted. But, he's the guy you want in the foxhole next to you." Over the course of season one, it is revealed that following the events of the film trilogy, Ash spent thirty years drifting from town to town, living in a mobile home trailer, with his pet lizard, Eli, and working a series of dead-end jobs at different branches of Value Stop. Ash has attempted to destroy the Necronomicon on multiple occasions. Unable to be rid of the book, he instead becomes its de facto caretaker. In season two, it is revealed that Ash had returned to his hometown of Elk Grove,
Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...
, after the events of the films. The people of Elk Grove refused to believe his stories of Deadites, and instead accused him of murdering his friends and his sister in the cabin, shunned him, and dubbed him "Ashy Slashy". * Ray Santiago as Pablo Simon Bolivar: A co-worker who became Ash's loyal sidekick. Pablo believes that Ash is a true hero and calls him "El Jefe" ("The Boss") as a mark of respect. Santiago describes his character as an "El Jefe in-training". He was raised by his uncle, "el Brujo", a
shaman Shamanism is a spiritual practice that involves a practitioner (shaman) interacting with the spirit world through altered states of consciousness, such as trance. The goal of this is usually to direct spirits or spiritual energies into ...
, who told him stories of an evil power which can only be defeated by "El Jefe". He fights valiantly alongside Ash and Kelly before being torn to ribbons by the demon
Baal Baal (), or Baʻal, was a title and honorific meaning 'owner' or 'lord Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power (social and political), power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The ...
, but was resurrected thereafter. Through a ritual in season 3, Pablo succeeds his uncle as a "brujo especial". * Dana DeLorenzo as Kelly Maxwell / Sorceress Kaya: An occasionally moody and initially reluctant co-worker of Ash and Pablo, Kelly is dragged into the fight against evil after she is orphaned. She is often described as a spiritual daughter of Ash. Impulsive but really good at fighting and improvisation. She is a crucial member of the "Ghostbeaters". She and her family are Jewish. Her mother died in a car accident six months prior to the beginning of the series. * Jill Marie Jones as Amanda Fisher (season 1): A Michigan State Trooper who set out to find Ash following the death of her partner. *
Lucy Lawless Lucille Frances Lawless (; born 29 March 1968) is a New Zealand actress and director. She is best known for her roles as Xena in the television series ''Xena: Warrior Princess'', as Number Three (Battlestar Galactica), D'Anna Biers on the re-im ...
as Ruby Knowby / Rebecca Prevett: A mysterious figure who is on a quest to hunt down the source of the recent evil outbreaks. * Michelle Hurd as Linda Bates-Emery (season 2): Ash's high school girlfriend who is now married to Emery, the sheriff of Elk Grove, and has a daughter, Lacey. She is one of the few people in Elk Grove happy to see Ash return. * Ted Raimi as Chet Kaminski (season 2): A hard-partying old childhood friend of Ash's who was secretly intimate with Ash's sister, Cheryl, thirty years prior, and pays the ultimate price for it. Raimi had previously appeared throughout the ''Evil Dead'' series in various cameo and
stand-in A stand-in, sometimes a lighting double, for film and television is a person who substitutes for the actor before filming, for technical purposes such as lighting and camera setup. Stand-ins are helpful in the initial processes of film and tele ...
roles. * Arielle Carver-O'Neill as Brandy Barr Williams (season 3): Ash's long-lost daughter, a smart middle-class American high school senior whose life is upended when she finds herself caught up in violent demonic events that result in her mother's death * Lindsay Farris as Dalton (season 3): A member of the Knights of Sumeria, an ancient order dedicated to battling evil.


Recurring

* Samara Weaving as Heather (season 1) The sole survivor of a hiking group, she is rescued by Pablo and Kelly when they reach the cabin. She is later indirectly killed by Ruby when the evil is set loose. * Hemky Madera as El Brujo (season 1, 3) Pablo's shaman uncle, Ash, Pablo and Kelly go to him for help against the Kandarian Demon. He is killed by the demon Eligos when he performs an exorcism on Kelly to release her from Eligos' thrall. *
Lee Majors Lee Majors (born Harvey Lee Yeary; April 23, 1939) is an American actor. He portrayed the characters of Heath Barkley on the American television Western series '' The Big Valley'' (1965–1969), Colonel Steve Austin on the American television sc ...
as Brock Williams (season 2–3) Ash's father, whom Ash has not seen in 30 or so years, since the events of '' Evil Dead''. It is from his father that Ash got his bad habits ( debauchery, etc.), and it's hinted that he has stolen girls/women from Ash in the past (i.e. his son's old high school P.E. teacher, Lillian Pendergrast). His day job is as a hardware store owner; his slogan is "Brock Williams - has wood - call me." He blames Ash for the death of his daughter, Cheryl, but then, minutes before being killed by his son's possessed Oldsmobile 88, comes to realize that his boy was actually a hero. He later appears as a spirit to help guide Ash on how to defeat the Deadites. * Stephen Lovatt as Sheriff Thomas Emery (season 2) The husband of Linda whom Ash used to pick on in highschool. He is now the strict sheriff of Elk Grove. * Joel Tobeck as Baal (season 2) A diabolical demon and Ruby's ex-husband who wants the Necronomicon for his own nefarious purposes. His abilities include using lust to manipulate others, possessing human bodies and the ability to slow down time near a target (or just their perception of it) where-in he can converse with or injure said target. When Baal is using this power, nobody seems to be able to see him besides the person he is interacting with. Ruby has also mentioned that he is impervious to physical attacks and can only be harmed through mystic or spiritual means. Ruby also disclosed that she didn't "choose" him when they became a couple, but had used his powers on her. It isn't clear if he is meant as a nod to the Biblical Baal or the Canaanite Baal. * Pepi Sonuga as Lacey Emery (season 2): Thomas' and Linda's 17-year-old daughter who becomes possessed by Kandarian spirits and is killed by Kelly. * Emilia Burns as Zoë (Season 3), a Knight of Sumeria who helps Ash in his crusade. * Katrina Hobbs as Candace "Candy" Barr-Williams (Season 3), An ex-girlfriend of Ash's who is the mother of their daughter Brandy. Ash married Candace in Branson, Missouri when they were drunk, and she never sought a divorce/annulment, leaving them legally married. She was later killed by a deadite before becoming one herself at her own funeral. * Samantha Young as Natalie (Season 3), A woman who Ruby kidnaps and holds hostage to be a sort-of babysitter for her spawn. She is later killed by the demonic baby.


Special guests

* Rebekkah Farrell as Linda (season 1) * Ellen Sandweiss returning as Cheryl Williams (season 2) from the original ''Evil Dead'' movie. * Nicholas Hope as Professor Raymond Knowby (season 2) * Alison Quigan (normal form) and Ted Raimi (Deadite form) as Henrietta Knowby (season 2) * Kelvin Taylor as an Orderly * Jeffrey Thomas as Stanley Gibson (season 3)


Production

The series first started life as two competing ideas for a fourth ''Evil Dead'' film. However at the time the Raimi brothers did not know how to get funding for the film and so it was instead written as a TV show. Writing for the medium presented new challenges for Sam as he had to make the series accessible to new viewers as well as create new characters to "bounce off of". The project was first officially revealed by Raimi at a surprise appearance at the 2014
San Diego Comic-Con San Diego Comic-Con is a comic book convention and multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California, at the San Diego Convention Center. Founded in 1970, originally showcasing primarily comic books and science fiction/fant ...
. That November, Starz announced that they officially put an order in for the series. Campbell said the channel was the only network that would give them the ability to be unrated and unrestricted; Campbell has stated that Starz does not require the crew to create alternate, "wimpy" versions for television. The pilot episode of the series was written by Sam Raimi (who also directed), Ivan Raimi and Tom Spezialy. In February 2015, original film series producer Robert Tapert returned to produce along with Raimi, Campbell and Craig DiGregorio. Ray Santiago and Dana DeLorenzo were cast in the lead roles of Pablo Simon Bolivar and Kelly Maxwell, and Jill Marie Jones was cast as Amanda Fisher, a Michigan State Trooper. In March 2015,
Lucy Lawless Lucille Frances Lawless (; born 29 March 1968) is a New Zealand actress and director. She is best known for her roles as Xena in the television series ''Xena: Warrior Princess'', as Number Three (Battlestar Galactica), D'Anna Biers on the re-im ...
was cast as Ruby, a mysterious figure who's on a quest to stop the evil outbreak and believes that Ash is the one who's the cause of it. In April 2015, Starz released a new graphic teaser advertising the TV show is coming in the fall of 2015, along with a new poster for the series. Filming commenced in Auckland, New Zealand later that month. Due to legal issues with
Universal Pictures Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (also known as Universal Studios or simply Universal), is an American filmmaking, film production and film distribution, distribution company headquartered at the 10 Universal Ci ...
, the events from ''
Army of Darkness ''Army of Darkness'' is a 1992 American dark fantasy comedy film directed, co-written, and co-edited by Sam Raimi. The film is the third installment in the Evil Dead, ''Evil Dead'' film series and the sequel to ''Evil Dead II'' (1987). Starring ...
'' could not specifically be mentioned in the first season. In April 2015, the producers made it clear that they wanted to resolve the issue, and in mid-2016, producer Robert Tapert stated that the rights issue had been solved and that references to ''Army of Darkness'' would appear from season two onward.


Online hoax

In June 2016, a
Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...
user posted a photo of a bruised, bloodied, and scratched Samara Weaving (without identifying that the woman in the image was Weaving or any actress). The photo was accompanied by the caption "The result of Fascism in America...simply because she was a Trump supporter." Although some news outlets clarified that the photo was of Samara Weaving and that she was not really injured, many supporters of then-candidate
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
were convinced that the image was proof of liberal violence against Trump supporters. In support of this misinterpretation of the photo, the post was shared close to 30,000 times. To try to counter this misinformation, ''Ash vs Evil Dead'' star Bruce Campbell tweeted, "Check your facts, folks. This is an actress named Samara Weaving from #AshVsEvilDead. This is a make-up test. Sad." Weaving herself tweeted, "I really hate this."


Cancellation and revival

It was announced on April 20, 2018, that ''Ash vs Evil Dead'' had been canceled after a three-season run, with the last episode airing on April 29, 2018. Towards the end of the third season, ratings had declined from the initial 437,000 same-day viewers of the first season to around 175,000 non- DVR viewers. According to '' Variety'', at the time of the eighth episode of the third season's airing, the show averaged a 0.08 rating in adults aged 18 to 49, with approximately 177,000 viewers per episode. Bruce Campbell stated at the time of the cancellation that "''Ash vs. Evil Dead'' has been the ride of a lifetime. Ash Williams was the role of a lifetime. It was an honor to reunite with ''Evil Dead'' partners Rob Tapert and Sam Raimi to give our tireless fans another taste of the outrageous horror/comedy they demanded. I will always be grateful to Starz for the opportunity to revisit the franchise that launched our careers". Following the news of the show's cancellation, fans of the series created petitions to renew ''Ash vs Evil Dead'' for a fourth or fifth season. In response to an article published by the website
Bloody Disgusting Bloody Disgusting is an American independent multi-media company, which began as a horror genre-focused news website specializing in information services that covered various horror media. The company expanded into other media including podcast ...
that encouraged fans to campaign for the show's continuation on the
Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
platform, Campbell tweeted "Big props to fans for the effort, but I'm retired as Ash. #timetofrysomeotherfish". Later, Campbell said about the show's cancellation and legacy: "I'm really glad we did it because we saw Ash's home, we went into his bedroom, we met his girlfriends, we met his daughter that we never knew he had and that he never knew he had, and we met his father, played by the great Lee Majors. I feel we really pushed all the buttons and he fulfilled his destiny written in that ancient book. He was the guy destined to defeat evil in the past, present and future, and he took off with a hot robot chick at the end to go kick in the future. What else do you need? We knew the ratings were bad. We knew, going into the last season, that we had to have an end because we didn't think Starz was gonna re-up us and we were right. So, thank God we did that." Campbell and Raimi signed on as producers of the film '' Evil Dead Rise''. Though Campbell will not star in the project. The cinematographer of ''Ash vs Evil Dead'', Dave Garbett, served as cinematographer on ''Evil Dead Rise''. On July 25, 2022, Campbell announced that an animated revival of ''Ash vs Evil Dead'' was in active development, with Campbell returning as the voice of Ash.


Episodes


Season 1 (2015–16)


Season 2 (2016)


Season 3 (2018)


Music

Joseph LoDuca, a frequent Sam Raimi collaborator who composed the scores for the '' Evil Dead'' films, contributes the original music for ''Ash vs Evil Dead''. The series also leverages excerpts from various 1970s and '80s popular songs, particularly featuring artists (e.g.,
Alice Cooper Vincent Damon Furnier (born February 4, 1948), known by his stage name Alice Cooper, is an American rock singer and songwriter whose career spans sixty years. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusion ...
,
Ted Nugent Theodore Anthony Nugent (; born December 13, 1948) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, and political activist. He goes by several nicknames, including Uncle Ted, the Nuge, and Motor City Madman. Nugent initially gained fame as the le ...
and Frijid Pink) from the greater
Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...
area where much of the action is based (and where Raimi, Campbell and Tapert grew up). Multiple
Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock, although their musical style has varied throughout their career. Originally for ...
songs from the 1970s are also used ("Highway Star", "Space Truckin'", "Stormbringer", etc.). In an interview, Sam Raimi states that the music selected for the series is based on the lack of growth of the Ash character over the past 30–35 years, and that "the music should reflect the last time he was engaged in society, and living". On November 11, 2015, it was announced that the Joseph LoDuca music score entitled ''Ash vs Evil Dead: Music from the STARZ Original Series'' would be released by Varèse Sarabande digitally on December 11, 2015, and via audio CD on December 18, 2015. The following are the tracks that are on that album: Furthermore, in the season two finale, a marching band plays Victory for MSU, the official fight song of
Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...
, where Raimi and Tapert attended college.


Reception


Critical response

All three seasons of ''Ash vs Evil Dead'' received critical acclaim. Review aggregator
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
gave the season a 98% rating based on 51 reviews, with an average rating of 8.1/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "True to the movies that spawned it, ''Ash vs Evil Dead'' is a gory, hilarious, and audacious resurrection of Sam Raimi's beloved horror franchise."
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
gave the season a rating of 75 out of 100, based on 25 critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the second season has a score of 100%, based on 17 reviews, with an average rating of 8.06/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "''Ash vs. Evil Dead''s sophomore season proves the show is in command of its characters and tone, turning up the gore, fun, and energy to deliver even more grisly, action-packed thrills and laughs." On Metacritic, the season has a rating of 82 out of 100, based on five reviews. The third season has a score of 100% based on 15 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, with an average rating of 8.32/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "''Ash vs Evil Dead''s third and final season rounds out the amiable ensemble with welcome additions and dishes out a series of splatter-filled set-pieces, closing the Necronomicon on the series in gleeful fashion".


Accolades


Home media

On August 23, 2016,
Anchor Bay Entertainment The revived Anchor Bay Entertainment is an American independent film production and distribution company owned by Umbrelic Entertainment co-founders Thomas Zambeck and Brian Katz. Anchor Bay Entertainment markets and releases "new release genre ...
, a division of Starz, released the first season of the series on
Blu-ray Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of high-defin ...
and DVD. The second season was released in the fall of 2017. With season 2 onwards, the future releases were done by Lionsgate Home Entertainment after the completion of the Starz/Lionsgate merger on December 8, 2016. The third and final season was released in August 2018. A complete collection with all three seasons was released in October 16, 2018.


Notes


References


External links

* * {{Starz Shows 2015 American television series debuts 2018 American television series endings 2010s American horror comedy television series The Evil Dead (franchise) American action television series American fantasy comedy television series American English-language television shows Saturn Award–winning television series Live action television shows based on films Television shows about spirit possession Television shows set in Michigan Starz original programming Zombies in television Television series about viral outbreaks Demons in television American sequel television series Television shows filmed in New Zealand Television series created by Sam Raimi