Ash Vs Evil Dead: Masterful Horror TV Show Raises the Bar For Adaptations

4 days ago 9

Ray Santiago as Pablo Simon Bolivar covered in blood in Ash vs Evil Dead.

Published Mar 5, 2026, 10:00 AM EST

Zach Moser is a Philadelphia native who loves films, television, books, and any and all media he can get his hands on. Zach has had articles published on satirical sites such as Points In Case, Slackjaw, and McSweeney's.

Ash vs Evil Dead raised the bar for how horror movies should be adapted to television, and the series is still as good as ever. The Evil Dead series is one of our great horror franchises, and unique in that almost every entry in the series feels fresh and different, but still squarely an Evil Dead production.

Sam Raimi's original trilogy stars Bruce Campbell, who recently announced his cancer diagnosis, and it's the Campbell films that inform the Starz TV show more than the 21st-century Evil Dead films. Ash vs Evil Dead manages to tell its own story with the characters from the movies, but offers something fans haven't seen before.

Ash Vs Evil Dead Is A Masterpiece Horror TV Show

Ash is bloody with his chainsaw hand while standing on front of two other characters in Ash vs Evil Dead

Ash vs Evil Dead is one of the great horror TV shows of the 21st century. The series is set about 30 years after the events of Army of Darkness. Despite it seeming like he was going to make something of himself after his experiences, Ash Williams (Campbell) is still working at the "Value Stop" as a stock boy.

The man has regressed into a boy over the years and spends his time drinking alone at bars and watching TV in his trailer. However, when Ash realizes the Evil Dead have returned, he decides to break out from his routine existence and once again become a hero capable of saving humanity.

It's not just a regression of storytelling that makes Ash a loafer again. It becomes apparent over the three seasons that Ash is dealing with severe PTSD and survivor's guilt over the events of the movies. His wish to avoid anything having to do with Kandarian Demons makes perfect sense, given that.

Just like the original trilogy, Ash vs Evil Dead straddles the line between horror and comedy expertly, and wisely hedges on the side of horror more often than not. Campbell's return as Ash is everything fans could hope for, and he brings humor, heart, and swagger that elevate the movies.

Ash Vs Evil Dead Is How You Adapt A Horror Movie To Television

Ash holds his chainsaw toward the camera in Ash vs. the Evil Dead

A lot of horror movies have been adapted into TV shows, often with great success. Child's Play, Hannibal, Bates Motel, The Mist, and many more series have expanded a feature-length horror film into a multi-season story. Ash vs Evil Dead raises the bar on how to tell these long-form horror adaptations, however.

Ash vs Evil Dead takes bits and pieces from the entire franchise. Though it's strictly set in the universe of the Sam Raimi films, the series does clearly take some inspiration from Evil Dead (2013) and Evil Dead Rise (2023). More importantly, Ash vs Evil Dead sets itself apart from these films.

Ash vs Evil Dead doesn't feel like an extension of any one of the Evil Dead films; it's its own thing, and can be watched and enjoyed even if you haven't seen the movies. More television adaptations of horror could take that lesson from Ash vs Evil Dead. Your show should be able to stand on its own.