Are we on the cusp of the return of rep cinema? Are people starting to come out of their home theaters to re-experience their favorite films in the real theater? Grindhouse Releasing is betting on it, as they’re getting behind a theatrical rerelease of The Evil Dead, Sam Raimi’s original and hardcore horror movie.

It’s about a 99% certainty that most of the folks reading this have never seen The Evil Dead in theaters, and the idea of midnight showings across the country packed with excited, buzzed fans should be getting your undies all sorts of moist. Grindhouse Release is one of my favorite companies; headed by Sage Stallone (yes, Sly’s son!) and Bob Murawski (Raimi’s editor on the Spider-Man films, among others), Grindhouse is the real deal, a tried and true company that gives the best possible treatment to exploitation classics. And while it’s easy to forget it these days, in 1981 The Evil Dead was a legit exploitation movie. With tree rape and everything! It seems like most people are really familiar with Evil Dead II, with its campy silliness, but The Evil Dead is way meaner and cruder.

There’s no date on when the midnight release happens, but it should be soon. And now this will give Anchor Bay an excuse to release their 97th edition of The Evil Dead on DVD and Blu-Ray.

Here’s the press release:

SAM RAIMI’S ‘THE EVIL DEAD’ RETURNS TO THE BIG SCREEN!

‘The Ultimate Experience in Grueling Horror’ is Back!

HOLLYWOOD, Calif. – Grindhouse Releasing is bringing Sam Raimi’s original horror classic THE EVIL DEAD back to the big screen as a midnight movie.

Raimi and producers Robert Tapert and Bruce Campbell gave the go-ahead for a series of EVIL DEAD revival screenings to Grindhouse Releasing partner Bob Murawski, the film editor of Raimi’s SPIDER MAN 1, 2 & 3, DRAG ME TO HELL and the EVIL DEAD sequel ARMY OF DARKNESS.

Stephen King hailed THE EVIL DEAD as “the most ferociously original film of the year”? when the film premiered in 1981. Shot in Michigan and Tennessee, Raimi’s low-budget debut was released independently with a self-imposed ‘No One Under 17’ rating for its graphic violence and gore.

THE EVIL DEAD launched Raimi and Tapert’s careers and made star Bruce Campbell a cult movie icon, spawning two hit sequels: EVIL DEAD 2: DEAD BY DAWN and ARMY OF DARKNESS. The EVIL DEAD trilogy has become a fan phenomenon, ranked among the most popular and acclaimed cult horror movies of all time.

A special screening of the EVIL DEAD trilogy sold out L.A.’s New Beverly Cinema this summer.
With a remake reportedly in the works, this theatrical release gives fans a chance to experience the original as it was intended to be seen.

“Nothing can prepare an audience for what they are about to see, because nothing punishes an audience like EVIL DEAD – especially on the big screen,” says Bruce Campbell. “I’m really glad it’s back. People are gonna be hurt.”

Formed by actor/director Sage Stallone and Murawski, Grindhouse Releasing restores and distributes classic horror and exploitation films. The company teamed with Quentin Tarantino in the ’90s to revive Lucio Fulci’s Italian horror classic THE BEYOND.

A similar theatrical break is planned for THE EVIL DEAD, with midnight screenings in select theaters across the U.S. and Canada.

Dates and venues will be announced at GrindhouseReleasing.com. For bookings, contact David Szulkin at info@grindhousereleasing.com.