'The Evil Dead' remake finds its Ash -- and it's a woman

Groovy! Sony's upcoming remake of the 1981 cult horror film "The Evil Dead" has cast its Ash -- sort of. Bloody Disgusting reports that Actress Lily Collins ("The Blind Side," "Mirror, Mirror") has been cast as Mia, a female spin on the iconic character made famous by Bruce Campbell in the original "Evil Dead" films. Will the Mia character merely be a female version of the quip-spewing, chainsaw-wielding Ash, or does director Fede Alvarez ("Panic Attack") have something different in mind?

One major difference between the original film and the remake is that unlike Ash, Collins' character suffers from a substance abuse problem (though, if Ash did have a drug problem, it would definitely explain a few things). Mia's drug addiction provides the impetus for her and a group of friends to sequester themselves in an isolated forest cabin; it also puts a cool twist on the fact that Mia is the first cabin dweller to start seeing things after the group discovers the mysterious Book of the Dead.

The gender reversal of the main character gives the contemporary version of "Evil Dead" an angle that most remakes simply don't have. It will actually make it different film, and not some quickie rehash used to exploit nostalgic filmgoers. While many expected a straight retelling that featured the same characters and story as the original, the reboot's female lead and the drug addiction subplot offers cool twist on an already well-worn horror plot. Alvarez's "The Evil Dead" will be technically be the second remake of the original film, since Raimi's "Evil Dead 2" was essentially just a bigger-budget retelling of the first film.

While the Uruguayan director is largely untested, fans of the franchise can take solace in the fact that both Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi (director of the first three "Evil Dead" films) are heavily involved as producers. However, to the dismay of some, divisive screenwriter Diablo Cody ("Jennifer's Body") was tapped to perform script revisions last year. Apparently the screenplay was lacking in the "unrealistic teenage jargon" and "pointlessly pop-culture-laden dialogue" departments.

"The Evil Dead" is slated for an April 12, 2013 release.