The Evil Dead Remake

Say it isn’t so!

SO! Wish I can say it wasn’t, but Bruce Campbell himself has confirmed the news in a Tweet in response to a question of whether or not to believe the long time rumors of another installment in the series. His response, in classic Campbell fashion, “Believe in the remake, dawg! The project is real. In the works. Cool as hell. Scary as hell.”

Dread Central was able to get a hold of a press release that confirms the green-light towards production of an Evil Dead remake:

From the Press Release:
Sam Raimi and original producing partners Rob Tapert and Bruce Campbell (who also starred in the original franchise) are gearing up to remake their cult sensation THE EVIL DEAD through their long standing Ghost House Pictures partnership. Raimi and Tapert were such instant fans of Fede Alvarez’s short film “Panic Attack” that they set up a blind deal with the filmmaker and through that process have attached Fede Alvarez to write and direct the film. Alvarez wrote the script with Rodo Sayagues. Academy Award® winning screenwriter Diablo Cody is currently doing revisions on the draft. Ghost House is committed to renewing the franchise and has the film on the fast track.

Raimi, Tapert and Campbell will serve as producers. Ghost House Pictures partners Joe Drake and Nathan Kahane will executive produce. Nicole Brown and J.R. Young will oversee the project for Ghost House. Lionsgate will handle international sales on the film.

The three producing partners commented, “We are committed to making this movie and are inspired by the enduring popularity and enthusiasm for the ‘Evil Dead’ series. We can’t wait to scare a new generation of moviegoers using filmmaking techniques that were not available to us thirty years ago as well as Fede bringing a fresh eye to the film’s original elements.”

Raimi wrote, directed and, along with Tapert and Campbell, produced the original horror classic THE EVIL DEAD that tells the story of five twenty-something friends who become holed up in a remote cabin where they discover a Book Of The Dead. An archaeologist’s tape recording reveals that the ancient text was discovered among the Khandarian ruins of a Sumerian civilization. Playing the taped incantations, the youths unwittingly summon up dormant demons living in the nearby woods, which possess the youngsters in succession until only one is left intact to fight for survival. THE EVIL DEAD spawned a franchise with the equally successful installments EVIL DEAD II and ARMY OF DARKNESS.

The good thing thus far is that Sam Raimi and Campbell will be involved in the project… that’s the good news. The bad news is that Raimi is not set to direct the film nor is Bruce Campbell to star in it but rather they are tagged on as producers! YIKES! According to the film’s director, Bruce will be making a brief cameo towards the film’s conclusion (sucks). Federico “Fede” Alvarez has been blessed/cursed to direct this new installment in the franchise which he claims to be a “quasi”-remake in an interview with El Pais. And by “quasi” I can only assume that there will be differences made from the original, specifically, as Alvarez explains that he, “will change the characters and some story details, while keeping the basic outline of friends who are beleaguered by demons in a cabin alone.” (Source – Bleeding Cool) In that case, why make an Evil Dead remake and not just a new movie in and of itself? Why not make a fourth installment instead a re-hash of the cult classic? Oy ve! (slaps forehead)

In the El Pais  article, Alvarez is quoted as saying:

“Tenemos claro los errores que no hay que cometer. Como somos fans de la original sabemos en qué lugar vamos a ofender a los que también son fanáticos y en qué no los vamos a molestar, pero no podemos hacer una película solo para ellos”.

Which pretty much translates to:

“We are clear on the errors that shouldn’t be made. As we are fans of the original, we know where we’re going to offend those who are also fanatics and also understand what’s not going to bother them, but we cannot make a movie just for them.”

In his own words, we see that Alvarez and company are not really making this movie for the fans but rather for the masses which is probably an early indication that they may be targeting a clear-cut demographic, wait for it, the tweens! Of course, this is just mere speculation on my part and I could be way off, but judging from the onslaught of remakes and sequels as of late I wouldn’t be surprised. And being a fan of the Evil Dead series, this is a far scarier thought than any of the movies combined!

The notion of a fourth installment into the series excited me, but a remake, well that just pisses me off!