Ash is back, and he brought his deadite friends with him.
Bruce Campbell will return as Ash Williams in the new Starz TV series 'Ash vs Evil Dead.' The character, who was first seen as the witless camper in Sam Raimi's 1981 horror film 'The Evil Dead,' has once again unwittingly unleashed an army of deadites on mankind.
Campbell and Raimi gamely spoke to EW about the show, which officially released the first photo of Ash in action. The photo features Campbell with his trademark chainsaw, as well as costars Ray Santiago and Dana Delorenzo. It looks like Ash is still a stock boy at the Value Stop after all these years.
Campbell revealed what Ash has been up to during his 22 year hiatus.
"Not much! He was perfectly happy doing basically nothing: telling lies about how he lost his hand in bars late at night," Campbell said. "That was basically his MO. So, he's not really the guy who should be dealing with this right now. But...he is. He's our guy!"
Raimi, who directed the show's premiere episode, confirms that Ash is the guy responsible for the deadite invasion.
"He's the only one stupid enough to really tamper with those spirits," the director said. "And he does. But he's also still a really good monster fighter. So, he's also going to be kicking some deadite buttocks, if you'll pardon the French."
Campbell had a fitting description of the new additions to the 'Evil Dead' franchise. "It's 'The Searchers' with carnage and mayhem," Campbell said. "I'm relegated a little bit into the John Wayne mode these days with my team-the young, virile, evil fighters who will pair up with Ash and take on this nemesis: this never ending, ever evolving nemesis."
'Ash vs Evil Dead' will air on Starz this fall.