In the Evil Dead world, weird things happen… hands are possessed, cut off and then have chainsaws fastened in their place; stop-motion clay Deadites do battle in the 1300s; blood rains from the skies…
Well, Evil Dead Rise promises to be no different.
“It’s cooked. It’s absolutely cooked,” says star Lily Sullivan, who plays Beth, one–half of an estranged sisterhood whose reunion is cut short when her sister Ellie (played by Alyssa Sutherland) becomes possessed and turns into the most nightmarish version of motherhood imaginable.
“Lee [Cronin, Director and Writer of the new installment] wrote a really messed up story and it’s been so awesome to work with him because this movie would not have been an easy sell,” Sullivan says. “[With this movie] we haven’t held back and we don’t pull our punches. It’s outrageous.”
“I can’t wait for audiences to see it,” adds Sutherland, “it pays homage to and is the evolution of the franchise, but is also a separate, messed up family story. It’s sick and twisted and I haven’t seen anything like this before.”
Sutherland herself is not much of a scream queen, joking that while she forced herself to sit through the original movies, she’s an easy scare – but she takes on the possessive character with a hauntingly good performance.
“[Getting into the character] you have to do something different and make it your own, whether you are playing a villain or not,” she explains. “I had a playlist of music that I listened to during the first few weeks of pre-production. I would be moving around my apartment in New Zealand developing the movement of the character, which was the essence of the demon itself.”
Making the movement and the possession of the Deadites into a new style might be essential for this new installment, but there is one crucial homage that was not to be missed out on – the iconic Evil Dead chainsaw, something that Sullivan got to try out first *ahem* hand.
So, how was it to pick up such a mantle?
“Girl had to work out!” Sullivan laughs. “I felt like I was in a video game and given new weapons and constant upgrades. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to strap into the chainsaw hand though, but it felt so amazing to just hold it in my hands.” She proceeds to wield an invisible chainsaw with excitement in her eyes.
Apparently, more than 6,500 buckets of fake blood were used during filming. And the set designs are bone-chilling.
“There was this one room on set that was designed to showcase all of this satanic stuff and Lee was so good to make sure the child actors stayed out of there,” they share. “He was very protective of them. The child actors had to go through so much. We had to go through so much, but they were very protective of the children involved.”
And if they were protecting themselves and the children against the Mother, what’s the first weapon they would go for?
“Oh, I’d run,” Sutherland says, “I’d totally run away! A weapon? Oh no, I am not trying to fight.”
Sullivan adds: “How could you top a chainsaw? Now that I’ve held one in my hands, it would have to be a chainsaw!”
Evil Dead Rise is in cinemas April 20.
