EVIL DEAD WRATH Writer/Director Reveals the Film Is a Franchise Prequel Set in 1972
The Evil Dead franchise has gone through some wild evolutions over the years, from the cabin-in-the-woods chaos of Sam Raimi’s original films to the brutal, modern nightmare fuel of Evil Dead Rise.
Now, fans have a clearer idea of where the next chapter is headed, and it sounds like it’s taking the series into some very unexpected territory.
With the latest Evil Dead movie arriving in theaters next month, with Evil Dead Burn, writer and director Francis Galluppi has opened up about his upcoming installment, Evil Dead Wrath, revealing that the film won’t move the timeline forward. Instead, it’s heading back to the beginning.
Speaking with Dread Central, Galluppi confirmed that Evil Dead Wrath is actually a prequel that takes place decades before any of the previous films.
He said: “This is yet another great departure. It predates everything. It takes place in 1972.”
That setting makes Evil Dead Wrath one of the most unique entries the franchise has attempted. While previous films have expanded the mythology in different directions, Galluppi’s story appears to be digging into a much earlier chapter of the evil that has haunted the series for decades.
The filmmaker also shared new details about the movie’s central story, which sounds less like a traditional Evil Dead setup and more like a disturbing family drama that spirals into supernatural horror.
Galluppi explained: “It’s the story of a French woman in a bad marriage in America, and… what we will discover along the ride – was probably an abusive husband, whose family did not believe her – and so they were basically the in-laws from hell.”
That premise offers a fresh angle for the franchise. Rather than focusing on a group of friends stumbling upon ancient evil, Evil Dead Wrath appears to center on a personal nightmare involving family dysfunction, abuse, and, of course, whatever demonic horrors eventually emerge from the shadows.
The Evil Dead saga has continually reinvented itself since Raimi launched the series with The Evil Dead in 1981. The franchise continued with Evil Dead II in 1987 and Army of Darkness in 1993 before being reimagined by Fede Álvarez with 2013’s Evil Dead.
More recently, Lee Cronin pushed the series into darker and more intense territory with Evil Dead Rise, which became a major success, earning $147 million worldwide and proving there’s still plenty of life left in the franchise.
Before Evil Dead Wrath arrives, fans will get another dose of Deadite terror with Sébastien Vaniček’s Evil Dead Burn, which is set to hit U.S. theaters on July 10.
As for Evil Dead Wrath, the film is currently scheduled to premiere in theaters on April 7, 2028. Between its 1970s setting, its focus on a troubled marriage, and Galluppi’s promise that it’s “yet another great departure,” it sounds like the franchise is once again finding new ways to unleash hell on audiences.
For horror fans who thought they knew where Evil Dead was headed next, this latest reveal suggests the series still has a few nasty surprises waiting in the woods.