Lucy Lawless to battle deadites with Bruce Campbell in Ash vs. Evil Dead

Aside from genuinely wanting a sequel to 2013’s THE EVIL DEAD, I can’t think of any reason why the upcoming Starz series Ash vs. Evil Dead won’t be a hugely fun ride. I’ve been proven wrong before though. I once watched a trailer for I, FRANKENSTEIN and thought "that doesn't look that bad".

Lucy Lawless is the latest actress to join the new series which of course will star the man himself, Bruce Campbell. Lawless will play Ruby, a mysterious character on a quest to hunt down the source of the recent evil outbreaks. Sounds like Ash has found himself a partner but the only problem is: she believes that Ash is the cause of it all.

Bruce Campbell will be reprising his role as Ash, the stock boy, aging lothario and chainsaw-handed monster hunter who has spent the last 30 years avoiding responsibility, maturity and the terrors of the Evil Dead. When a Deadite plague threatens to destroy all of mankind, Ash is finally forced to face his demons –personal and literal.  Destiny, it turns out, has no plans to release the unlikely hero from its “Evil” grip.

Lawless is most well known for her work on Xena: Warrior Princess, but has proven herself to be a talented (and funny) actress in Battlestar Galactica, Parks & Recreation, Spartacus, and many others.  Lawless joins previously announced cast members Bruce Campbell (Ashley J. Williams), Ray Santiago (Pablo Simon Bolivar), Dana DeLorenzo (Kelly Maxwell) and Jill Marie Jones (Amanda Fisher).

The first season of the series (I can only imagine that there will be more) will consist of 10 half-hour episodes which will begin filming in New Zealand this spring with a premiere in late 2015. Not only is Sam Raimi on-board the series as an executive producer, he’ll be directing the first episode himself. Groovy. Oh shut up, you knew that was coming.