Every ‘Evil Dead’ Movie Explained Before You Watch ‘Evil Dead Burn’

The ‘Evil Dead‘ franchise has been terrifying audiences for over four decades, and it is finally about to get bloodier. With ‘Evil Dead Burn’ bringing a new family reunion straight from hell to theaters, now is the perfect moment to remember exactly how this franchise clawed its way from a shoestring cabin flick into one of horror’s most reliable moneymakers.

Whether fans have followed Ash Williams since the beginning or only jumped in with the 2013 reboot, revisiting the full ‘Evil Dead’ timeline makes the upcoming sequel hit that much harder. Here is everything worth knowing before the Deadites rise again.

How the ‘Evil Dead’ Franchise Began

The franchise traces back to 1981’s ‘The Evil Dead,’ a supernatural horror film written and directed by Sam Raimi in his feature directorial debut, starring Bruce Campbell as Ash Williams alongside four friends vacationing at a remote cabin. The group finds an audio tape that releases a legion of demons and spirits, and four of the five friends suffer demonic possession, leaving Ash to survive an onslaught of increasingly gory mayhem.

The film was made for just $350,000 and launched the careers of Raimi, producer Rob Tapert, and star Bruce Campbell.

Horror author Stephen King gave the film a rave review, which helped convince New Line Cinema to acquire distribution rights and give it a wide theatrical release. The film ultimately grossed a solid worldwide total for its era and became a cult phenomenon.

Raimi followed it up with ‘Evil Dead II’ in 1987, which reunited Raimi, Campbell, and Tapert with a much larger budget of $3.5 million and combined horror with dark comedy in a way rarely seen before. The trilogy closed out with ‘Army of Darkness’ in 1992, sending Ash back in time to battle the undead with a decidedly more fantastical tone.

The 2013 Reboot Reignites the Series

After years of stalled sequels, the franchise found new life with the 2013 ‘Evil Dead.’ Directed by Fede Alvarez and shot in New Zealand outside Auckland, the film became the first installment neither directed by Raimi nor starring Campbell in the lead role. It was produced by Raimi, Campbell, and Tapert, and brought in $26 million in its opening weekend, eventually grossing over $54 million domestically and more than $43 million internationally for a worldwide total near $97.5 million.

The reboot’s grittier, more serious tone was a deliberate departure from the humor of the sequels, and it paid off both critically and commercially. The success also paved the way for a television continuation, ‘Ash vs Evil Dead,’ which brought Campbell back to the role that made him a genre icon.

‘Ash vs Evil Dead’ ran for three seasons on Starz after years of fans begging Campbell to return to the character. Its cancellation left the film side of the franchise open for a new direction entirely.

‘Evil Dead Rise’ Becomes the Franchise’s Biggest Hit

That new direction arrived with ‘Evil Dead Rise’ in 2023. Written and directed by Lee Cronin, the film served as a standalone sequel to the 2013 reboot and stars Lily Sullivan and Alyssa Sutherland as two estranged sisters fighting to save their family from Deadites, with Ellie becoming demonically possessed after her son opens the Necronomicon and plays an incantation from an accompanying recording.

The film also shifted the setting dramatically. Unlike the earlier films set in a desolate cabin in the woods, ‘Evil Dead Rise’ mostly takes place in a broken down, suburban Los Angeles high-rise apartment building.

That change of scenery helped the film feel fresh while keeping the Necronomicon at the center of the mythology.

Commercially, it became a phenomenon. The film’s worldwide total climbed past $100 million, making it the highest-grossing installment of the franchise and surpassing the previous record held by the 2013 reboot at $97 million, all on a budget of less than $20 million. Critically, 85 percent of critics’ reviews on Rotten Tomatoes were positive, with the consensus praising the film for carrying the franchise forward while still feeling groovy for longtime fans.

What to Expect from ‘Evil Dead Burn’

Now the franchise returns with ‘Evil Dead Burn,’ an upcoming supernatural horror film directed and co-written by Sébastien Vaniček, produced by Rob Tapert and series creator Sam Raimi, serving as a standalone sequel to both the 2013 ‘Evil Dead’ and 2023’s ‘Evil Dead Rise’ as the sixth installment in the film series. The film stars Souheila Yacoub, Tandi Wright, Hunter Doohan, Luciane Buchanan, Erroll Shand, and Maude Davey.

The setup follows a familiar but freshly twisted premise. After the loss of her husband, a woman seeks solace with her in laws in their secluded family home, and as one by one they are transformed into Deadites, the gathering becomes a family reunion from hell, leading her to discover that the vows she took in life live on even in death.

Raimi selected Vaniček to direct after being impressed with his work on ‘Infested’ from 2023, and the new director has been vocal about his intentions for the project. According to Vaniček, he wanted the film to create a visceral, sensory experience that punches the audience in the gut.

The film has also already secured its rating ahead of release. ‘Evil Dead Burn’ has earned an R rating for strong bloody horror violence and gore, and language, consistent with the rest of the demonic franchise. Behind the camera, Vaniček is joined by director of photography Philip Lozano, production designer Nick Connor, editor Maxime Caro, and costume designer Sarah Voon.

Release Date and What Comes Next

‘Evil Dead Burn’ is scheduled for release in the United States on July 10, 2026, distributed domestically by Warner Bros. Pictures, while Sony Pictures Releasing International handles most international territories through its Screen Gems banner. France and Italy will see the film released slightly earlier, on July 8, 2026.

The franchise is not stopping there either. A seventh mainline installment, titled ‘Evil Dead Wrath,’ is already in the works, written and directed by Francis Galluppi, with principal photography beginning in February 2026 in Auckland, New Zealand. That film is currently scheduled to release theatrically on April 7, 2028.

For a franchise that started in a cramped Tennessee cabin on a shoestring budget, the road to ‘Evil Dead Burn’ and beyond proves just how far the Deadites have traveled without ever losing their bite. With a new family being torn apart by demonic possession, horror fans are already buzzing about whether this family reunion from hell can top the chaos of ‘Evil Dead Rise,’ so which cursed relative do you think won’t make it out of this one alive?