The 1980s were a perfect time to be a horror fan. With the explosion of the slasher craze and the rise of household names like Freddy Krueger and Jason Voorhees, the decade solidified horror’s mainstream status for decades to come as horror meastros like John Carpenter, Wes Craven, and David Cronenberg put their touch on the genre. The ‘80s are long gone, and unfortunately, streaming one of the decades best horror movies is about to get a little bit harder after it leaves HBO Max.
The streaming platform has been making some pretty great additions to its horror catalog throughout November, including The Conjuring: Last Rites, but HBO Max subscribers only have a few days left to watch an older classic. After joining the platform back in September, Evil Dead II will stop streaming on HBO Max on November 30th. The second installment in Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead franchise that premiered six years after his 1981 classic, the horror comedy movie sees Bruce Campbell reprise his iconic role as Ash Williams, who goes up against another batch of horrifying demons at a secluded cabin in the woods.
Evil Dead II Is a Top-Tier ‘80s Horror Movie That Managed To Be Better Than the Original
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It’s common for sequels to falter, but Evil Dead II marked a rare occasion where a sequel perfected the formula of the original. The film leaned into the slapstick horror of the original, doubling down on the over-the-top gore and laugh-out-loud, absurd comedy to create a film that has audiences screaming and laughing almost simultaneously. Under Raimi’s direction, the movie was pushed to a more extreme, frantic level, creating a sense of constant, chaotic motion that set the tone for the rest of the franchise and was seen in the sequel Army of Darkness and the Ash vs Evil Dead TV show.
Evil Dead II went down as a genre- and career-defining movie that still holds up even after countless rewatches. The film, which paved the way for other successful horror-comedies like The Cabin in the Woods and Zombieland, even managed to outperform Raimi’s original movie in terms of critic and audience approval. With a “Certified Fresh” critic score of 88% and an 89% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes, Evil Dead II is the highest-rated movie in the entire Evil Dead franchise, sitting a respective three and five points ahead of the original’s ratings.
Where to Stream Evil Dead II After It Leaves HBO Max?
Horror fans with an HBO Max subscription will want to watch Evil Dead II when they still can, because the movie currently isn’t streaming on another platform. When the film exits HBO Max on November 30th, VOD services will be the only streaming option unless the movie moves to a rival service.
Evil Dead II’s lack of streaming availability will only add to franchise fans’ difficulty streaming the five-film series. Watching all five movies currently involves hopping from platform to platform and shelling out some cash to rent or buy movies. The original The Evil Dead currently only streams on Plex, while the original trilogy’s final installment, Army of Darkness, is only available to rent or buy. For the newer installments, fans can watch the 2013 soft reboot Evil Dead on Pluto TV and Evil Dead Rise on HBO Max. The franchise’s only TV show Ash vs Evil Dead, is available with a Starz subscription and is also on Pluto TV, Sling TV, The Roku Channel, and Philo.
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