Last year, Starz found its first out-and-out triumph with Ash vs Evil Dead, a continuation of the universe started by Sam Raimi's classic horror film The Evil Dead. What proved to be so surprising about the series is not how well the frenzied, hilarious tone of Raimi's original film, as well as Evil Dead 2 and Army of Darkness, transferred over, or how well the iconic Bruce Campbell anchored a full season of television, but rather how well the world that Raimi, alongside a variety of writers, directors, and producers, was built and expanded within the ten-episode inaugural season. The fact that every episode was both scary and very funny didn't hurt at all.


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Image via Starz

Not surprisingly, the anticipation for the second season has been growing rapidly since the season finale, and we recently got a few bits of major news about the upcoming season. First of all, season 2 is set to premiere on September 23rd on Starz, right in the middle of the kick-off of the fall television season. Second of all, the series will add a trio of actors to its roster, beginning with Raimi's own brother, Ted Raimi, who is set to play Ash's best friend from high school who rejoins his pal on the road to a particularly strange hell. On top of that, Michele Hurd, straight off an excellent run on Daredevil's second season, will be playing his high school love interest, and Lee Majors will be playing Brock Williams, Ash's long-lost father.

Most exciting, however, is today's release of the first image from season 2. Though the image doesn't give us a clear look at any of the new faces, or any of the co-stars, it does indeed seem in line with Ash as a character, as he takes his chainsaw-hand to a pressurized keg of cold beer. It's the ideal first image from a movie or TV season, in that it gives nothing away about the narrative and yet is clearly representative of the spirit of Ash vs Evil Dead. You can check out the full new image right below:


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Image via Starz