The Evil Dead series is one of the greatest in horror history, but a mind-blowing fan theory completely changes the terrifying classic franchise. 1981’s The Evil Dead was spawned from the twisted mind of filmmaker, Sam Raimi, and the indie gem created new trends in horror. Combining supernatural terrors with a cabin in the woods setting, it had everything.
Because The Evil Dead was a box office smash, a sequel materialized later in the decade. Evil Dead II brought in a lot of slapstick humor, setting the tone for the franchise for years to come. It also reaffirmed Bruce Campbell’s status as an iconic horror star, launching Ash Williams into the discussion for greatest hero in the genre’s history.
Though Evil Dead II is arguably the greatest sequel in horror movies, it also introduced some confusion into the franchise’s timeline. Filmmakers in the past were less concerned with continuity, so the follow-up has always existed in an odd space between sequel and remake. Even as more movies and shows came out, the confusion grew.
It’s safe to say that Evil Dead plays fast and loose with the rules, and it has created a myriad of interesting fan theories that try to explain away the inconsistencies. While many fan theories are downright goofy, others are actually pretty clever and recontexualize the beloved series. One fan theory uses the classic unreliable narrator trope to perfection.
A Fan Theory Claims That Evil Dead 2 Is Ash’s Version Of The Story
Though it has pretty well been established that Evil Dead II is both a remake and a sequel to The Evil Dead, that has left some unanswered questions. This gap has inspired speculation, but few could come up with a satisfactory answer. Reddit user DeltaStarship devised a brilliant theory that explains how the popular sequel can actually be both.
While watching the second film, the author wrote “I just kept thinking “This feels like how Ash would tell people it happened.“ The user posits that The Evil Dead and Evil Dead 2 are the same event, but the latter is Ash’s exaggerated version to impress others. The user notes how “he is noticably [sic] “Cooler” than his ED1 counterpart.“
Finally, the user wraps in Army of Darkness by suggesting that the recap bookend at the end of the film also encompasses Evil Dead II. The argument is that the events of the second and third movie are being recounted to the shopper at S-Mart that Ash is seen talking to at the end of Army of Darkness.
The unreliability of Ash as a narrator plugs a lot of gaps, and can be used to explain away nearly any inconsistency in the original Evil Dead trilogy. Since The Evil Dead and Evil Dead II essentially tell the same story but with radically different details, it could be seen as Ash’s embellishments or changes to accommodate his own ego.
Ash Vs. The Evil Dead Adds To The Fan Theory’s Credibility
The fan theory doesn’t have much support in general, but Ash vs. the Evil Dead lends some credibility to the idea. The three-season series brought Bruce Campbell back as Ash, and sent him on various deadite adventures. While it did tinker with the continuity of the previous movies, it also affirmed details from the past.
In the first episode, Ash tells his life story to Pablo, and describes his first encounter with the deadites. In the tale, he mentions that he and a group of friends went to a cabin, which conforms closer to the events of The Evil Dead. Evil Dead II shows Ash and Linda only, not a group of friends.
Perhaps Ash felt more comfortable telling the truth about the events, including how many people he lost on that fateful night. According to Bruce Campbell (via Den of Geek), the scenes in Evil Dead II leading up to Ash’s possession never actually happened, and were meant to be a recap since they didn’t own the rights to the first movie.
Campbell has mentioned that Evil Dead II picks up immediately after the first movie, and isn’t a separate trip to the cabin.
This doesn’t poke holes in the theory, but does make it redundant since it’s been established that the first two movies tell a continuous story. However, the theory is still a nice addition to the character, showing how Ash is willing to tell lies to make himself look better. It also still explains the continuity errors between the two movies.
Evil Dead Is Still One Of The Greatest Horror Franchises, Despite Its Complicated Timeline
Though the Evil Dead franchise will likely tweak its continuity forever, it will always remain one of the greatest series in movie history. Its strength lies in its sense of humor, terrific scares, and strong character work, and the little details really don’t matter all that much. Ash is accepted as an unreliable narrator, and that’s part of his charm.
The movies without Ash (2013’s Evil Dead and 2023’s Evil Dead Rise) are strong on their own merits and have legitimately given the series new life. While fan theories are a fun way to dig into the meat of the Evil Dead franchise, there’s no way to tie things together. Thankfully, the consistent quality makes up for the confusion.
- Cast
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Bruce Campbell, Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, Lily Sullivan, Nell Fisher, Ray Santiago, Dana DeLorenzo
- Movie(s)
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The Evil Dead, Evil Dead II, Army of Darkness, Evil Dead (2013), Evil Dead Rise
- Character(s)
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Ashley Williams, Mia Allen, David Allen, Bethany Bixler, Kassie Bixler, Pablo Simon Bolivar, Kelly Maxwell
