ALeading up to the film's release there was some fan debate as to whether this may actually be a spin-off or sequel that is set within the continuity of Sam Raimi's original Evil Dead films, with a different set of characters tormented by the same demons from the original films. However, the film is actually a re-imagining of the story of the first two films. There are many continuity elements that directly contradict things from the original films, such as the owner of the cabin, how the Book of the Dead reacts to fire, and the way in which the demon possession occurs and reacts in people. However, both Evil Dead II (1987) and Army of Darkness (1992) purposefully contradicted story elements from each previous film, so anything is possible in future sequels. Director Fede Alvarez stated in an interview that it was kept deliberately ambiguous. All of the coincidences between the original movies and the new one suggest a remake. Yet, since the cabin survived at the end of Evil Dead II, it is possible that the new movie simply takes place 30 years later, ownership of the cabin has changed, and the demonic book has magically re-manifested itself back in the cabin to force a new generation of youngsters into a similar series of events. Bruce Campbell said at WonderCon 2013 that he hopes for a crossover movie between his character and the surviving character of Evil Dead (2013).
