Evil Dead Burn (2026) Review: A Violent and Entertaining Chapter in the Evil Dead Series

Evil Dead Burn mostly keeps the ugly, ridiculous energy that understands what people come to Evil Dead for and delivers plenty of messy horror fun.

After all these years, the Evil Dead franchise could easily feel like it’s running out of ideas, but with a new director at the helm, Burn proves that thankfully, there’s still plenty of life left in this horror series.

Plot

After the loss of her husband, a woman seeks solace with her in-laws. As one by one they transform into deadites, she comes to discover that the vows she took in life - survive even in death.

Good Points

• Stays true to the franchise’s identity, for the most part

• Brilliant over-the-top violence and dark fun

• Practical effects are excellent

• The violence is creative, inventive and often entertainingly ridiculous.

• Souheila Yacoub is particulary good

• Remains pretty entertaining overall

Bad Points

• Some dialogue feels weak

• Franchise callbacks occasionally feel unnecessary and interrupt the pacing

• Doesn’t quite find the perfect balance between horror and comedy

My Thoughts on Evil Dead Burn

It still feels like Evil Dead

The biggest thing Evil Dead Burn gets right is that it actually feels like an Evil Dead film, and while that might sound a bit obvious, but it’s something a lot of long-running franchises do struggle with, especially with new directors taking the helm.

This series has always worked because it’s willing to be completely ridiculous - it can be disgusting, violent, and genuinely unpleasant - but there’s usually this sense of fun underneath it all, a lot of fun.

Burn thankfully understands that, and while it doesn’t spend the whole time trying to recreate the older films, which is probably the right decision, it takes the general idea - the nasty horror, the practical effects, the complete lack of restraint - where director Sébastien Vaniček builds his own version around that.

It does lean a little more serious than some previous entries though, and I did miss some of the stranger humour that usually comes with the franchise, but the important pieces are still there, as it has the right attitude, which matters more than simply throwing in references.

The house feels like the kind of place you should leave immediately

The settings in the Evil Dead films has always been one of the film’s strongest parts, as they always seem to feel like somewhere with its own history, and probably one that nobody would be interested in hearing.

Burn also gets a lot of mileage out of that - the space feels closed in, and there’s always a sense that the characters are running out of options - featuring a constant, uncomfortable feeling that you always sense is hanging around.

And while the film has plenty of shocks, it also has an atmosphere that gets time to build, which makes the shock moments work so much better when they do arrive, so when the film finally decides to go all the way, it feels like it has earned that escalation.

The gore is exactly as excessive as you’d expect

Now, nobody watches an Evil Dead film expecting restraint, and Burn definitely understands that, as the practical effects are a huge part of the appeal here, and the film clearly wants everything to feel physical, messy, and uncomfortable.

There are moments where you can’t help but appreciate the effort that has gone into making everything look as unpleasant as possible, and then there are other moments where the only possible reaction is laughing because the film has gone so far past normal horror logic that it becomes ridiculous.

But that’s always been part of the fun with this series, because te violence isn’t just there to shock, there’s a creative element to it as well, as if you have followed the franchise, you’re simply watching to see what horrible idea the filmmakers come up with next.

The only issue I did have with regards to this element, is that the film sometimes felt like it was competing with itself, because once it reaches a certain level of chaos, every new scene feels like it has to find a way to be bigger than the last one, and after a while, I felt some of the impact reduced because you’re kind of expecting the next escalation before it happens.

It’s still entertaining though, boy is it entertaining.

The cast commit to the madness

Souheila Yacoub deserves a special mention, as she throws herself into the physical side of the role fantasically well, with a real commitment, especially in the more intense scenes, and she gives the film something solid to focus on when everything else is becoming increasingly chaotic.

Hunter Doohan also fits well into the tone, and while the dialogue isn’t always perfect, and there are moments where the horror setup is obvious before the film gets there, everyone plays the parts well enough that it doesn’t become too distracting.

The franchise connections don’t always help

The weakest parts of Evil Dead Burn for me were probably the moments where it tries to remind you too much of the bigger franchise as a whole, and yes I do enjoy callbacks and easter eggs, and some references and connections will be/was fun for longtime fans, but there are points where it feels like the film is looking backwards instead of just being its own thing.

I’ve always preferred this series when it focuses on the immediate problem - a creepy location, a group of characters, and some completely horrible ideas are usually enough - and the mystery around the world is often more interesting than having every detail explained.

The extra connections aren’t terrible to be fair, but they do occasionally interrupt the momentum, as sometimes the less you know, the better these films work, but I also appreciate I am probably being a bit fussy here.

Still funny, but also more serious

I will also say this film is more serious than previous ones, as yes its still funny at times, but it also has an emotional heartbeat too, and while the balance between horror and ridiculousness has always been such a big part of the franchise’s identity, I don’t think that balance is quite right here.

Burn still has flashes of it, but this film is much more committed to being serious overall, which does work, and there’s nothing wrong with wanting to make a nastier, more straightforward horror film, but it does mean some of the playful energy is missing.

Those moments where the film seems to realise it has gone completely overboard are some of the best parts of Evil Dead, and I wanted a little more of that here.

But, having been a bit worried going in, I am now in a happy place and ready to buy it on 4K when it releases to add to my collection.

Final Verdict

While Evil Dead Burn isn’t the best the franchise has produced, it does understand why people keep coming back to it, as it knows exactly what kind of monster it is, and thankfully it’s still having enough fun being one.

Trailer

Film Credits

Directed by Sébastien Vaniček

Written by Sébastien Vaniček and Florent Bernard

Based on The Evil Dead by Sam Raimi

Produced by Rob Tapert and Sam Raimi

Starring Souheila Yacoub, Tandi Wright, Hunter Doohan, Luciane Buchanan, Erroll Shand and Maude Davey

Cinematography by Philip Lozano

Edited by Maxime Caro

Music by Double Danger

Running time - 109 minutes

More Film Posts