The Chainsaw Era Is Over: Bruce Campbell Retires From Playing Ash in Evil Dead for Good
·
21.08.2026 17:20
·
2 min read
Bruce Campbell has officially closed the book on the 45-year saga of Ash Williams, the cult-favorite Deadite slayer. In an interview with Gizmodo, the actor confirmed he will never reprise the role again — not in movies, not in TV shows, and not even in animated projects or video games.
When asked about the character’s future, Campbell was blunt: “Ash is done.” If the franchise creators ever need the iconic hero back on screen, the actor suggested hiring an impersonator with a similar voice or using sound generation technology.
No More Voice Work, Animated Plans Scrapped
This statement dashes fans’ last hope. In 2018, after Starz canceled Ash vs Evil Dead, Campbell announced he was stepping away from the role in live-action due to his age, the grueling stunts, and the physical toll. At the time, however, he remained open to voicing Ash in an animated follow-up, noting that his voice had “aged far less than his body.”
Now that door is shut too: the animated project with his original voice won’t happen, and Campbell’s involvement in the franchise will be limited solely to executive producer duties.
45 Years With the Boomstick: The Legacy of a Horror Legend
Bruce Campbell first donned the role of the hapless guy from the cabin in the woods in Sam Raimi’s 1981 original The Evil Dead. Over four decades, the character became a global pop-culture icon:
- Film trilogy and TV series: The Evil Dead, Evil Dead II, Army of Darkness, and three seasons of Ash vs Evil Dead;
- Signature style: replacing his severed hand with a chainsaw, the boomstick, and his catchphrase “Groovy”;
- Video games: voicing the character in dozens of titles, including Evil Dead: The Game and a crossover in Dead by Daylight.
As Campbell told The A.V. Club, the box-office success of Evil Dead Rise and the recent horror film proved that the universe can thrive with new directors and characters without constantly looking back to the classic trio of Ash, the cabin, and Sam Raimi.
