Lots of Halloweeny horror info came out of the New York Comic Con over the weekend, not least of which was this first official image from the upcoming Evil Dead remake.
That is Jane Levy, star of TV's Suburgatory, looking somewhat less than her usual attractive self. As with Carrie, the filmmakers have been talking up how far removed this film is from the original - there's no Ash in this one, for example - but this image shows us something very familiar: a deadite-ised girl leering out of a locked cellar.
What's interesting, however, is that in the first Evil Dead, that happened to supporting character Cheryl, whereas here we're being told that Levy, playing a character called Mia, is the lead. Hmmm. Maybe there'll be a moment where she confronts herself in a mirror and tells herself she's fine, or scuffles with a co-star and says, "I'M ALL RIGHT NOW!"
"As middle-aged filmmakers now, we realized maybe it's just too late to strap on that chainsaw one more time," said Bruce Campbell at the NYCC panel, explaining why this is a remake and not an Evil Dead 4 starring his good self. "Your shit will be just as freaked as it was in the original. We've got some really talented people who kicked their ass off. I know you fans were pissed. Don't think I didn't read about it every single day. Just wait and see the movie. I will accept all of your collective apologies. We don't want to screw this up. Even though I make fun of you fans relentless, we want to make you happy horror filmgoers. This movie will be like putting on a comfortable shoe. It will squeeze you. You will say, 'That feels just like an Evil Dead shoe.' But then you say, 'I can't get this shoe off!'"
Campbell also had some words regarding Diablo Cody, brought in to polish the screenplay: "As middle aged men we don't know how young people talk. Oh, and she won a fucking Academy award."
The panel also debuted a trailer, so expect that online shortly. Levy stars in the new Evil Dead alongside Shiloh Fernandez, Jessica Lucas, Lou Taylor Pucci, and Elizabeth Blackmore, and the director is Fede Alvarez. It's out in the UK on April 12.