There is nothing quite like Ash vs Evil Dead on TV right now. The horror comedy has taken both the Ash character and the vision of the franchise glimpsed in Army of Darkness to the nth degree on Starz, with the showing having just began its third season. But just because Ash is currently doling out quips while killing demons on the small screen, doesn't mean that the Evil Dead franchise will never return to the theater. In fact, much of what the future holds for Evil Dead depends on the future of the TV show, as Ash himself, Bruce Campbell, explained:
We're going to see what the TV gods have in store for us. We're ready either way. If they take us off the air, we can think about another movie. And if they don't, we can just keep plugging away.
If that quote makes the future seem somewhat uncertain, that's because it is. As Bruce Campbell told Entertainment Weekly, Ash vs Evil Dead is currently waiting on a Season 4 renewal to be decided in March, so things are in limbo at the moment. Obviously if the show is cancelled, for the Evil Dead story to continue, it would have to find another platform, and perhaps returning to the big screen would be an option depending on demand and financing. But so long as the show is on the air, there is really no reason for an Evil Dead movie, at least not one in the current timeline and featuring the Ash character.
I'm sure the die hard Evil Dead fans out there wouldn't object to another movie, but I honestly can't think what a movie would bring to the table that the show isn't already delivering. Ash vs Evil Dead is wild and hilarious, and delivers all the scares, thrills and gore you could ever want from this franchise. There isn't much horror comedy out there as there probably should be, and the television format seems perfectly suited to the Evil Dead story. What the show achieves on a TV budget is remarkable; the practical effects and ridiculous gore are only matched by Bruce Campbell as Ash, delivering humor and violence in equal doses. If the show is cancelled, there would have to be something compelling and new to justify the franchise's return to the big screen, simply because of how much it has been able to achieve on the small screen.
The evolution of the Evil Dead franchise is one of the more interesting in the horror genre. The original 1981 film was a straight-up horror flick that gave way to a sequel with comedic elements. Then 1992's Army of Darkness really embraced the Ash character and went full on horror comedy. Fede Alvarez's 2013 remake of the original played things straight and didn't feature Ash or the comedy the franchise was destined for. Bruce Campbell returned to the franchise for Ash vs Evil Dead. There, in the TV realm, is where I feel the franchise has truly realized its own potential and leaned into its own ridiculousness. This is largely thanks to the brilliance of Bruce Campbell as Ash, the role he was born to play.
Ash vs Evil Dead airs Sunday nights on Starz. For all the latest in hilarious and horrific movie news, stay tuned to CinemaBlend.
