There are very few horror movie franchises that don’t end on a final scene that leaves the door ajar for a sequel. While 2013’sEvil Deadreboot did just that, it also bucked a trend to previous movies in the series when it allowed Jane Levy’s traumatized protagonist to walk away from the horrors of the cabin in the woods. However, directorFede Alvarezhas released a short alternative scene that was initially going to end the movie on a very familiar note, but it was cut thanks to an intervention from producer and originalEvil DeadcreatorSam Raimi.
While a like-for-like reboot ofThe Evil Deadwas perhaps unnecessary, the 2013 movie did just enough to differentiate itself from the original video nasty and pulled in a respectable $97 million from its $17 million budget. However, when it came to the ending of the movie,The Evil Deadhas a history of seeing something terrible befall the hero, previously always played by Bruce Campbell in his most iconic role. This time, the protagonist walked off to find help, leaving behind destruction and a very intact Naturom Demonto ready to cause more deadite carnage in the future.
In a post onTwitter, director Alvarez has shared the original ending shot that he recorded for the movie, which will seem very familiar to long-term fans of the franchise as it sees the camera zooming out of the cabin and straight at a screaming Levy just like the end ofEvil DeadandEvil Dead II. However, Sam Raimi persuaded the director to change it as he believed that their young lead had gone through enough during the film and should be allowed to walk away.
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As one of cinemas movie iconic horror entries,The Evil Deadhas endured being banned, cut, slapped with a video nasty tag and yet has still continued to be part of popular culture. Following Raimi’s original trilogy, which ended with 1992’sArmy of Darkness, it was a long while before Bruce Campbell returned as Ash Williams again in the very short but tantalizing post credit scene of the 2013 reboot. That then led to Campbell hauling his character through three seasons ofAsh Vs Evil Deadbefore the series was canceled in 2018.
This year will see theEvil Deadreturn once again this year withEvil Dead Rise, the first entry to not feature Campbell and also the first to abandon the cabin in the woods to move the story to a high-rise apartment block where two sisters will find themselves and three children trapped in a battle with the deadites in the cramped, claustrophobic location. Directed and written by Lee Cronin, who was selected by Raimi for the job,Evil Dead Risewill bring a new vision of terrorto theEvil Deadfranchise when it comes to HBO Max sometime before the end of the year.
