How do I start watching Evil Dead?
Who’s up for an Evil Dead marathon? To make it easy, we’ve compiled this guide on how to watch the Evil Dead movies in release or chronological order.* Ready?
Step #1: Repeat after me: Klaatu verata nikto . . .
Just kidding. Bad things happen if you say that out loud, LOL. Instead, just scroll down to see which streaming services and video-on-demand (VOD) outlets have the Evil Dead movies available to stream, rent, or buy.
* PSSSSST! THERE’S NO DIFFERENCE! SINCERELY, THE DEADITES!
Pro tip: Watching every Evil Dead movie in order will take 7 hours and 26 minutes. If you include all 30 episodes of Ash vs. Evil Dead, it’ll take 20 hours and 32 minutes.
What are the Evil Dead movies?
Sam Raimi’s The Evil Dead (1981) is an utterly terrifying, extra-gory supernatural horror film about five people who awaken evil spirits by reading from an ancient tome called the Naturom Demonto, or the Sumerian Book of the Dead. (Other, similar books like the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis factor into other films in the series.)
The film launched the careers of Raimi and of actor Bruce Campbell, and birthed a rabid cult following. The franchise now encompasses four other films, three seasons of a TV series (Ash vs. Evil Dead), a musical, video games, comic books, and merchandise.
Bruce Campbell as Ash Williams in Evil Dead II. (Video screenshot from YouTube)
Six years later, in 1987, Raimi essentially remade The Evil Dead with a bigger budget. Evil Dead II (a.k.a. Evil Dead II: Dead by Dawn) again scared the bejesus out of audiences but also made them laugh. ED2 also landed Campbell’s character Ash Williams in medieval times, setting up the 1992 film Army of Darkness, which made us laugh more than tremble.
In 2013, Uruguayan filmmaker Fede Álvarez (Don’t Breathe, Alien: Romulus) rebooted/reimagined The Evil Dead with Evil Dead (2013), which some fans love and others hate. The film is ultimately best known for using 70,000 gallons of fake blood.
Now, 44 years after shooting the original film, comes another reboot, Lee Cronin’s Evil Dead Rise. With an entirely new cast and story, Evil Dead Rise uses what worked in the original The Evil Dead—fast action, clever camera work, a sense of isolation, ace sound design, buckets of gore—to crowd-pleasingly freaky effect. The film also ratchets up the terror by adding character depth and mostly eschewing the series’ trademark black comedy.
How to watch the Evil Dead movies in order
The easiest way to watch the Evil Dead movies in order is to use the JustWatch links below, which will tell you which streaming services have the films. available to stream, rent, or buy.
Evil Dead movies in release order
- The Evil Dead (1981)
- Evil Dead 2 (1987)
- Army of Darkness (1992)
- Evil Dead (2013)
- Evil Dead Rise (2023)
“JOIN US!” A scene from 1981’s The Evil Dead. (Video screenshot from Max)
How to watch the Evil Dead movies in chronological order
If you wanna know how to watch the Evil Dead movies in timeline order, that’s easy! Just watch the movies in release order, ’cause there aren’t any prequels to mess with the sequence of events (at least until Evil Dead: Bridgerton arrives).
That being said, you could include the TV series Ash vs. Evil Dead (2015–2018), which happens between Evil Dead (2013) and Evil Dead Rise (2023). If you slide the show’s three seasons in between those movies, you can watch the entire Evil Dead franchise in chronological order.*
* DO IT! – THE DEADITES
Evil Dead movies+ in chronological order
- The Evil Dead (1981)
- Evil Dead 2 (1987)
- Army of Darkness (1992)
- Evil Dead (2013)
- Ash vs. Evil Dead (2015–2018)
- Evil Dead Rise (2023)
“Mommy’s with the maggots now.” A scene from Evil Dead Rise. (Warner Bros.)
Where to watch Evil Dead (1981)
The one and only original that started it all (well, technically, the 30-minute prototype short “Within the Woods” kicked off the series). Don’t listen if someone tells you to skip this one because Evil Dead II is a remake. They have similarities, but they’re two distinctly different experiences—and The Evil Dead is the scariest film in the series.
Where to watch Evil Dead 2 (1987)
Evil Dead II is a bigger-budget remake of the first film, but only to a point (no spoilers). Hilarious—but still plenty scary in its own right, the second film just doesn’t feel as bleak and evil as the first. It is, however, a horror classic alongside its predecessor.
Where to watch Army of Darkness (1992)
The third film in the Evil Dead series, Army of Darkness again cranks up the comedy at the expense of terror, but the film’s cult following ain’t complainin’. Another classic to cap off the first trilogy. And then there was . . .
Where to watch Evil Dead (2013)
Again, some folks love Fede Álvarez’s Evil Dead reboot and others (yours truly among them) hold the film in lower esteem because of such things as unlikeable characters, bad digital effects (some of those Deadites don’t deserve to wear the name), and a general lack of tension. Evil Dead (2013) does have some great gore scenes, though—and even a few late but genuinely freaky moments.
Where to watch Evil Dead Rise (2023)
After Evil Dead (2013), Lee Cronin’s Evil Dead Rise took everything that worked in The Evil Dead and even a cue or two from Álvarez’s film and made the scariest Evil Dead movie since the first one. The result? Messy shorts and nightmares—and a lot of happy Evil Dead fans.
Where to watch Hail to the Deadites (2020)
If you’re a massive Evil Dead fan, consider adding the fantastic documentary Hail to the Deadites to your marathon.
How to rent or buy the Evil Dead movies on demand
Wanna rent or buy the Evil Dead movies digitally? In the links above, choose a leading video-on-demand retailer like Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+, Google Play Movies, VUDU, and more.
Pro tip: Some VOD retailers offer films in SD, HD, and 4K. If you don’t have a 4K TV, buy the films in HD. You’ll save a few bucks, and when you do buy a new 4K TV, it should be able to upscale your HD file to near-4K quality.
How to watch Ash vs. Evil Dead
Picking up three decades (in Evil Dead universe and real-world time) after Army of Darkness, the Ash vs. Evil Dead TV series finds Bruce Campbell back as Ash Williams. Ash now lives in a mobile home and has a drinking problem. He also has a long resume of short-term, low-level jobs. But now the Deadites are back—and it’s Ash’s fault, so he has to go back to his old gig.
How to watch the Evil Dead movies in order FAQs
Should I watch The Evil Dead or Evil Dead II first?
Watch The Evil Dead (1981) first. It’s disgusting, fun, and truly terrifying—a must-see for horror fans. Still, some people say you can skip the first film because Evil Dead II covers the plot of The Evil Dead in its first 10 minutes. That’s absurd. Watching horror films isn’t about saving time. Don’t cheat yourself. So, again, watch The Evil Dead first. We’ll bet you re-watch it a time or two in your life, and even show it to friends.
