20 Horror Movies WAY More Successful Than Anyone Expected
16. The Evil Dead
The 1980s are considered a golden age for horror, thanks to masterpieces like Aliens, Predator, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and so forth. But with so many great frightfests jostling for the top spot at the time, even the best struggled to receive recognition.
For this reason, Sam Raimi knew his directorial debut, The Evil Dead, could get lost in the shuffle. The teen horror was overflowing with creativity, but it was still a horror indie made by a first-time director that was fighting against mainstream features. However, The Evil Dead had a secret weapon. Rather than being a conventional paranormal thriller, Raimi made his project into a horror-comedy. Rarely had anybody seen horror embrace slapstick on this level before, urging viewers to march to theatres in droves.
Based on its reputation, it's no surprise to learn that The Evil Dead was a hit. But even veterans mightn't realise the original made significantly more than Evil Dead II. The sequel is usually rated better, but it barely recouped anything, while its predecessor raked in almost $30 million on a $325,000 budget. Evil Dead II is a treasure, but the first one is the victor in terms of return on investment and overall profit.