Bruce Campbell's Perfect Evil Dead Movie Return Seems Way Less Likely After New Sam Raimi Announcement

Summary Don't hold your breath for an Ash, Mia, and Beth crossover movie after new Evil Dead spinoff announcements.

Even if Bruce Campbell doesn't play Ash Williams, he could still appear in upcoming Evil Dead spinoff movies in different roles.

With Evil Dead Rise setting up a new direction for the franchise with new characters, a crossover with past protagonists seems unlikely.

While Evil Dead Rise seemed to set up a thrilling franchise return for Bruce Campbell’s Ash Williams, a new announcement from Sam Raimi’s production company makes this prospect less likely. Bruce Campbell’s breakout role came in 1981 when starring in Sam Raimi’s The Evil Dead movie, where the actor smashed horror movie conventions to emerge as the sole survivor and “Final Guy.” Campbell would reprise his role in Evil Dead II in 1987 and Army of Darkness in 1992, bringing a close to Raimi’s original Evil Dead trilogy before the franchise would be rebooted decades later.

However, Campbell’s tenure as Ash Williams wouldn’t stop there, as he would later star in the TV show Ash vs Evil Dead and cameo in Evil Dead (2013) and Evil Dead Rise (2023). While rumors of retiring Ash Williams have circulated over the years, it doesn’t seem like Campbell is any closer to being done with the franchise than it is with him. After appearing as a priest who might’ve been Ash Williams in Evil Dead Rise, demand grew for another sequel to fulfill the crossover movie that never happened after the 2013 entry. While a crossover between the three major franchise protagonists would be exciting, recent news may throw a wrench in this idea.

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A Crossover Movie With Ash, Mia & Beth Doesn't Seem Likely After New Evil Dead Spinoff Confirmation

Evil Dead's future is focused on new spinoffs

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While an Ash, Mia & Beth vs. Evil Dead crossover movie seemed like a real possibility after Evil Dead Rise, nothing has come of a specific followup to those franchise characters in the year since the 2023 box office hit debuted. Rather, the biggest franchise news has been related to two new Evil Dead spinoff movies. Following the announcement in February 2024 that Sébastien Vaniček would co-write and direct a new spinoff movie, Deadline revealed in April that Sam Raimi's Ghost House Pictures would be developing another Evil Dead spinoff from writer-director Francis Galluppi.

Evil Dead Movie/Show Protagonist Actor The Evil Dead (1981) Ash Williams Bruce Campbell Evil Dead II (1987) Ash Williams Bruce Campbell Army of Darkness (1992) Ash Williams Bruce Campbell Evil Dead (2013) Mia Jane Levy Ash vs Evil Dead (2015-2018) Ash Williams Bruce Campbell Evil Dead Rise (2023) Beth Lily Sullivan

With the priority seeming to be on expanding the franchise through new characters and stories, an ideal crossover between the protagonists from The Evil Dead (1981), Evil Dead (2013), and Evil Dead Rise doesn’t appear to be on the horizon. Though an Ash, Mia, and Beth crossover could still come to fruition further down the line, the next few Evil Dead entries are likely to only feature new characters coming across the dreaded Necronomicon as they unleash more Deadites. Still, this doesn’t necessarily mean that Bruce Campbell will be entirely absent from the upcoming Evil Dead movies.

Related 10 Groovy Ways Bruce Campbell's Ash Can Return In Evil Dead Rise 2 Evil Dead Rise 2 is inevitable, and there are several ways that it could bring back the franchise's original protagonist, Ash Williams.

With the priority seeming to be on expanding the franchise through new characters and stories, an ideal crossover between the protagonists from The Evil Dead (1981), Evil Dead (2013), and Evil Dead Rise doesn’t appear to be on the horizon.

Bruce Campbell Could Still Appear In Evil Dead's New Spinoff Movies

No Ash Williams doesn't mean no Bruce Campbell

Considering Bruce Campbell still appeared in the last two franchise off-shoots, there’s a high likelihood that the actor will return in some capacity for the upcoming Evil Dead spinoff movies. Campbell only appeared on-screen to reprise his role as Ash Williams for a few seconds during the mid-credits scene of Evil Dead (2013), which simply saw him utter his character’s iconic catchphrase, “Groovy.” Campbell then had two voice cameos in Evil Dead Rise, one of which included the actor voicing a priest on one of the vinyl recordings (which could still be Ash Williams) while the other simply had him make aggressive chewing noises for when Ellie ate her neighbor’s eye.

Campbell could therefore take on similar roles in the two upcoming Evil Dead movies – even if he’s not playing Ash Williams. From voice cameos to potentially tackling a brand-new role, it would be a treat to see Campbell return to Evil Dead in any form. After 43 years of Ash Williams and continued success through Evil Dead Rise, it’s clear that the franchise doesn’t feel right without Bruce Campbell’s involvement.