How knowledgeable are you about the Evil Dead franchise?
Whether you’re apart of the original mayhem which sprang forth into all kinds of nightmarish mayhem 30-years-ago, or you only recently discovered the otherworldly film after hearing passages from the flesh-strewn book of the dead in the newest installment of the franchise, chances are some diabolical details lie unknown about the history of these feature-length classics. So, for those horror-loving maniacs looking to learn about a series of movies that revolutionized the genre, read along and join the ultimate ranks of other diehard Deadites!
The Evil Dead wasn’t the first or only title choice
Sam Raimi, Bruce Campbell, and some other friends were regularly making both non-horror and horror-related short films before the production of The Evil Dead which is likely one of the reasons they scraped the original title of the film. While there’s no arguing that The Evil Dead is a catchy name, some alternative headings to the cult-followed horror classic were “Book of the Dead”, “These Bitches are Witches”, “The Evil Dead Men”, “The Evil Dead Women”, “Fe-Monsters”, and “Blood Flood”.
While many of the above names sound gruesomely cool, we think that the right name was chosen. Take a look at some of The Evil Dead horror collectibles that we have for sale right now on nightmaretoys.com!
The actors smoked weed during one of the 1981 scenes
While it’s safe to assume that marijuana provided the filmmakers and performers with a hint of added inspiration, the reality is that their stoned, unruly behavior proved to be too much and was scraped from the script and replaced with a scene where the actors are listening to an old recording rather than smoking a joint.
The franchise is Stephen King and Peter Jackson approved
Fans continue to love the relentless gore and dark humor of this low-budget franchise, but most don’t know that Stephen King gave the first film his stamp of approval at the 1982 Cannes Film Festival. Aside from making $29.4 million worldwide, The Evil Dead has received a glowing review from director Peter Jackson, citing that it was one of his biggest influences — “It made me think, God I could do that… here comes a horror movie that somebody of a similar age made with a 16mm camera”.
The 2013 Evil Dead remake contains Easter eggs for the diehard fans
Aside from accumulating a considerable amount of The Evil Dead horror collectibles, overenthusiastic admirers of the franchise flocked to theatres in 2013 to watch their favorite supernatural classic unfold before their eyes with the help of modern production technologies. Nevertheless, screenplay writers did not disappoint and included lots of hidden Easter eggs for the franchise’s biggest fans. One example was the scene where there was a deck of cards spread across the ground inside of the cabin, each card facing up represents one that character Cheryl, says before she is devilishly possessed: “Two of spades! Jack of diamonds! Jack of clubs!”
Which movie is your favorite installment within The Evil Dead franchise? Drop a comment below to start a conversation with our other readers.