All the demonic terror seen in the Evil Dead franchise can be blamed on a pesky little book called the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis. Also referred to as “Naturom Demonto” and the “Book of the Dead,” the Necronomicon is the ancient text that unleashed the Deadites seen in Sam Raimi’s original Evil Dead trilogy and its 2013 reboot, as well as the upcoming Evil Dead Rise. But the newer movies don’t feature the same copy of the book seen in the Raimi originals. Every generation of Evil Dead heroes has been tormented by a slightly different version of the Necronomicon.
Ash Williams spent the first two Evil Dead movies contending with the curse that was unleashed when he and his friends vacationed to a creepy cabin in the woods and unwittingly opened the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis. Evil Dead II, a sequel that also acts as a comedic remake, culminated in the surprise twist of Ash being sent back in time to the Middle Ages. The third movie, Army of Darkness, revolved around Ash’s quest to return to his own time, like Back to the Future with more demons and decapitations. While he was back in the medieval era, Ash encountered not one, not two, but three Necronomicons. One of those dastardly books ended up in the cabin where the first two movies had taken place, but where the other two ended up remained a mystery until Raimi handed over the reins of the franchise to other filmmakers.
The Evil Dead franchise is about to make a comeback with Evil Dead Rise, a tantalizing new entry in the series that brings the threat of the Deadites into an urban setting for the first time. Based on its blood-soaked trailer, it seems as though Evil Dead Rise has done a great job of recapturing what made Raimi’s original trilogy so fun and unique. It has all the twisted humor and boundary-pushing gore that made Raimi’s work stand out in a saturated horror landscape. Evil Dead Rise takes place in the same universe as Raimi’s films, but it’s not a direct follow-up. Since Ash and the other familiar characters are absent from the 2013 reboot and the new sequel, the multiple Necronomicons are the only way of explaining how those movies tie into Raimi’s trilogy.
Army Of Darkness Revealed Three Necronomicons
When the trailer for Evil Dead Rise dropped online, director Lee Cronin did a deep dive with Empire magazine to discuss the juiciest moments from the trailer. Cronin teased that the grisly horrors seen in the trailer are “just a taste of the grind” that audiences have in store when the movie hits theaters on April 21. From the bloody pan of fried eggs to the needle in the eyeball to the gruesome ripping of some poor soul’s scalp, Cronin discussed all the goriest images found in the trailer. He also cleared up how Evil Dead Rise connects to the previous Evil Dead films, and how the Necronomicon ended up in an apartment building in Los Angeles.
Cronin told Empire, “In one of the early meetings I had with Sam Raimi, I said, ‘You know the way in Army of Darkness, there’s three [Necronomicons]? You had one, [Evil Dead (2013) director] Fede [Álvarez] had one – I’m going to take the other one.’” So, of the three Necronomicons that eagle-eyed Evil Dead fans spotted in Army of Darkness, one of them ended up in the cabin that Ash and his friends rented out in the original 1981 indie masterpiece, one of them ended up in the cabin that Mia and her friends rented out in the 2013 reboot, and the other one ended up in the L.A. Apartment complex from Evil Dead Rise.
Do Different Necronomicons Have Different Text?
The three Necronomicons in the Evil Dead franchise aren’t necessarily three copies of the same book; they weren’t all printed by the same devilish press. According to Cronin, each version of the Naturom Demonto has a wicked personality of its own: “Those books may all have slightly different personalities – it’s not exactly the same book, necessarily, that Ash had in the cabin. But it’s very, very firmly related. It could even be more dangerous...” He mentioned that his version of the Necronomicon sets itself apart with influences from Celtic folklore.
The version of the Book of the Dead seen in Evil Dead Rise appears to be a living organism: it has veins and a razor-sharp set of teeth. Cronin has called it “the bastard cousin of the other books.” It’s unclear if the actual text is any different, but this Necronomicon has its own ominous illustrations teasing the supernatural terror it’s about to unleash. Without wanting to spoil anything, Cronin did tease that there could be more links between Evil Dead Rise and its predecessors than the recurring image of macabre literature: “There are connections to the past; lines are drawn.”