From Now Playing Magazine: Evil Dead Remake Talk
Written by Scott Collura
Monday, 31 January 2005
Fans of Sam Raimi’s beloved Evil Dead trilogy are still having trouble grasping the concept of a remake of the original film, but that’s not stopping Raimi and his partners from doing just that. The 1981 Evil Dead was the ultra-low budget horror flick that first got the Spider-Man director noticed, and now Raimi, producer Rob Tapert, and star Bruce Campbell are moving ahead with a proposed redux of the film. And for starters, Tapert has confirmed for Now Playing that Campbell will not be appearing as Ash, the idiot-hero of the original films.
“Yes,” Tapert says when asked if the nouveau Dead will be recast, “because it will be off of the original movie. It’s five kids go to a cabin, but it’s not a continuation of the existing Evil Dead backstory.”
It’s already been established that Raimi will not be directing the remake either, but that he, Tapert and Campbell are looking for a fresh perspective on the series.
“[We’re] talking to various filmmakers about their possible interest, and it’s still in the germination stage,” says Tapert. “There are people who we would like to give a chance to create their own vision as to what Evil Dead is, so we’re kind of hearing what other people’s take might be and moving forward along those lines.”
Tapert explains that he and his partners are not just looking for a copycat Sam Raimi to make the film either, but rather they hope to find someone who can make the premise fun again even for the Dead creators themselves.
“Just redoing, and using a bad word, aping the original Evil Dead… there’s really no reason to do that,” he says. “That movie exists. So it’s finding a way to please the people who love the original, introduce it to a whole new group of people who have never seen it, and thrill them. And also for Sam and myself and Bruce, to thrill ourselves with working with new people [on] what their idea is to take that kind of wild experience to the next level.”
So who will play the new Ash?
“Sam’s looking pretty good right now,” Tapert deadpans.