Stop us if you have heard this one…a beloved series of low budget cult horror films (3 in total) that gain new fans every year and have a whole generation of generation X’ers who wish that the ageing director (who makes blockbusters now) and its ‘leading man who never was’ would bite the bullet and make a fourth instalment. The duo decides instead to produce a remake of the first movie, essentially killing the dreamed of fourth sequel…. but wait a second…

Apparently a legal battle has broken out over just who exactly owns the rights to THE EVIL DEAD. Some outfit called Award Pictures reckons it owns the rights and is planning on making EVIL DEAD 4. Renaissance Pictures the company that director Sam Raimi formed with Robert Tapert and the chin himself Bruce Campbell, is now suing Award for the sequel rights. But get this; the legal work says that this planned fourth film is interfering with Raimi’s own plans to make a sequel through Sony and Filmdistrict who are producing the remake. Award is claiming the rights as they say that Raimi confirmed via a book in 2000 that he would never do a fourth movie and thus the trademark was abandoned.

Renaissance Pictures claims that the apparently entitled EVIL DEAD 4: CONSEQUENCES will confuse the consumer and uses plotlines and characters on whom it holds copyright. The most interesting thing about this story that will get horror fans in a lather is; Renaissance Pictures claims about Raimi planning a fourth all along. When you think about it for a minute, this could be a ruse by some low budget fanboy outfit to galvanise Raimi and co into action. Renaissance is probably more worried about what the effect would be on possible sequels to the EVIL DEAD remake if it’s a hit. Interesting nonetheless…

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