Spartacus and Xena: Warrior Princess alum Lucy Lawless is set to co-star opposite Bruce Campbell (Burn Notice) in Starz’s 10 episode series Ash vs Evil Dead, which is a follow up to the classic horror film franchise The Evil Dead.
Ash vs Evil Dead follows Ash (Bruce Campbell), the stock boy, aging lothario and chainsaw-handed monster hunter who has spent the last 30 years avoiding responsibility, maturity and the terrors of the Evil Dead. When a Deadite plague threatens to destroy all of mankind, Ash is finally forced to face his demons –personal and literal. Destiny, it turns out, has no plans to release the unlikely hero from its “Evil” grip.
Lucy Lawless, whose other television credits include Australian mini-series The Code, WGN America’s Salem and NBC’s Parks & Recreation, will play Ruby, a mysterious figure who is myopic in her quest to hunt down the source of the recent Evil outbreaks. The only problem is that she believes that Ash is the cause of it all.
Lawless joins a cast which, in addition to Campbell, also includes Ray Santiago as Pablo Simon Bolivar, Dana DeLorenzo as Kelly Maxwell and Jill Marie Jones as Amanda Fisher. The casting reunites the actress with executive producers Sam Raimi and Rob Tapert, who worked with Lawless on 90s hit series Xena: Warrior Princess.
Production on Ash vs Evil Dead is set to commence on location in New Zealand this spring. The series, which is eyed for late 2015 premiere, is being written by Ivan Raimi, Craig DiGregorio, Tom Spezialy and Sam Raimi, the latter of whom is also set to direct. The executive producers are Bruce Campbell, Sam Raimi, Rob Talpert and Craig DiGregorio.
