It's all pretty well-known in the horror community by this point that author Stephen King was instrumental in getting Sam Raimi's THE EVIL DEAD the exposure it deserved after King caught a screening of the film at Cannes and then let the filmmakers plaster his glowing review-quote all over their marketing materials declaring the movie to be "The most ferociously original horror film of the year…"
But did you know that King helped get EVIL DEAD 2 made as well? I sure didn't. But it's true as Bruce Campbell was recently speaking with COS and told the tale of how King stepped in and helped find the financing for EVIL DEAD 2 when it seemed like the film was surely… wait for it… dead by dawn.
Bruce Campbell on Stephen King:
On the second movie, Evil Dead 2, we were having trouble getting financing. We were prepping it and trying to get it going. We had a woman who was kind of like doing scheduling stuff, and we had to let her go. So she was a crew member, and she took off down to North Carolina and started making all these movies.
Dino De Laurentiis is making movies down there. Who does she run into? She gets on the crew of Maximum Overdrive, directed by Stephen King. Stephen was like, “What are you up to?” And she was like, “I just came from working with these guys trying to get money for Evil Dead 2.” He goes, “Evil Dead 2? They can’t get the money for that?” She goes “No.” He calls Dino De Laurentiis and goes, “You should make this movie.” I think we had a deal … we met with Dino and I think we had a deal in about half an hour, and a basic understanding.
Wow, that is a f*cking classic story and one I know I will be annoying the shite out of people with for the next few years at the very least. Stephen King saved Evil Dead 2. That's one hell of a story right there. Read it, love it, share it, and then tell all of your friends for years and years. You're welcome.
What do you think of Stephen King saving Sam Raimi's EVIL DEAD 2? Make sure to hit us up and let us know in the comments below or on social media!
EVIL DEAD 2 synopsis:
The second of three films in the Evil Dead series is part horror, part comedy, with Ash Williams (Bruce Campbell) once again battling horrifying demons at a secluded cabin in the woods. After discovering an audiotape left by a college professor that contains voices reading from the Book of the Dead, Ash's girlfriend Linda (Denise Bixler) becomes possessed by evil spirits that are awakened by the voices on the tape. Ash soon discovers there is no escaping the woods.
Buy EVIL DEAD 2 on Blu-ray HERE.
