Is Evil Dead Rise A Sequel To Evil Dead 2013?

With tons of violence and gore and a maniacal sense of humor, the Evil Dead series is returning with its first new film in over a decade: Evil Dead Rise, which releases on April 20, 2023. Despite the length of time between entries, fans of the franchise may be curious to know if Evil Dead Rise is a direct sequel to the last film in the series, 2013’s reboot Evil Dead, or even if it’s a continuation of the short-lived TV series Ash vs Evil Dead.

Does Evil Dead Rise Continue Any Earlier Evil Dead Storylines?

The answer to that is simply no. Evil Dead Rise is its own original story with no ties back to the original trilogy, the reboot film, or Ash vs Evil Dead. 

There were plans after the release of the 2013 reboot to create a sequel that continued from that film’s cliffhanger, but those plans were seemingly put on hold when that film’s director, Fede Alvarez, focused on the Don’t Breathe films. The plan was to make a sequel to the reboot (tentatively titled Evil Dead 2), have franchise creator Sam Raimi lead a sequel to Army of Darkness, then combine both storylines for some cross-over action. 

That plan obviously fell through, though. Each party became more interested in different opportunities, and series mainstay Bruce Campbell, who plays original protagonist Ash Williams, retired from the role after the cancellation of Ash vs Evil Dead. 

Since then, this newest film was greenlit by Raimi and Campbell, who both served as executive producers. Evil Dead Rise is intended to be a separate entity and a fresh start for the series rather than a sequel. There may be a reference or two for longtime fans of the series, but newcomers don’t have to worry about catching up on all of that juicy Evil Dead Lore for this entry.