Evil Dead fan documentary Hail to the Deadites will premiere at Fantasia

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Seven years in the making, director Steve Villeneuve's documentary HAIL TO THE DEADITES is set to have its world premiere at the Fantasia International Film Festival next month. Due to the pandemic, this year's edition of the Fantasia festival will be a "cutting-edge virtual festival", and it looks like HAIL TO THE DEADITES will be available to watch on the Fantasia online platform from August 20th through September 2nd. "All film screenings will be geo-blocked to Canadian audiences and only accessible from within the country."

As the title indicates, HAIL TO THE DEADITES is connected to the EVIL DEAD franchise. This 80 minute documentary focuses on the fans of EVIL DEAD.

Through interviews with the cast, crew, collectors, fans, freaks and geeks, HAIL TO THE DEADITES seeks to illuminate the darkest reaches of the EVIL DEAD franchise’s undying and still-growing popularity, a popularity that has spawned four films, a TV series, comic books, figurines, and surpassed even its creator’s wildest dreams.

HAIL TO THE DEADITES puts the spotlight on the fans that cultivated and spread this groovy pop-culture infection! It celebrates those who’ve celebrated the films! 

Villeneuve had this to say about the project: 

Some people might find it weird to not see any footage of the franchise in the documentary but this is what I’ve been aiming for since day one. I’m really proud to say that everything you will see or hear in this documentary was created by the fans. So, rev your chainsaws and load your boomsticks, it’s time to give the DEADITES some sugar, baby!

Franchise cast members Bruce Campbell, Ted Raimi, Betsy Baker, Theresa Tilly, Ellen Sandweiss, Richard DeManincor, Tom Sullivan, Danny Hicks, Kassie Wesley DePaiva, Sarah Berry, Rick Domeier, Patricia Tallman, and Bill Moseley were all interviewed for the documentary, while one of the fans interviewed was Arrow in the Head founder John Fallon! Fallon and Villeneuve can be seen together in one of the images below.

I love the EVIL DEAD franchise, so watching cast members and fans celebrate its greatness sounds like a good time to me.