Whew!! Another year at Sinister Creature Con was had and it was a total blast. Before I knew the exact guests were set in place I wondered how they would follow up the Elm Street, Freddy’s children panel that took place at the first ever SCC held in Stockton earlier this year. That was until I sat in a packed panel room full of hot breath and tons of other fans as we waiting for half of the cast of “Ash vs. Evil Dead” to enter the room. Did I also mention Ted Raimi, brother of the genius behind the Evil Dead franchise, Sam Raimi, and Danny Hicks (Evil Dead 2, Intruder) would be there?

During the roughly 45 minutes spent in that room it was pure laughter. Ted Raimi walked in that room and stole the show from the moderator and the rest of the characters began to all do their own thing in unison. During the panel they all explained that being in a long term franchise together, even with the new installment, meant being a family. Ray Santiago (who plays Pablo) explained how he’s always wanted to be someone else mainly because he never felt comfortable in his own skin. But on a lighter note he talked about how his grandmother used to catch him pretending to drink alcohol from perfume bottles and doing interpretive dance to Beethoven. Dana DeLorenzo (who plays Kelly) explained to us all that she’s always loved acting since a child and used to record herself telling jokes in her room to her stuffed animals at the age of two. Her love for acting grew as she continued on to some theater. Ted gave us a comical rundown of how he used to be a dishwasher and wanted to join the army but never could and eventually moved to New York.

I think one of the most insightful moments of the panel was each actor talking about their most memorable experience while filming. Dana and Ray both explained that during the end of the pilot episode they both had the same exact moment at the same time. As Bruce (Campbell) stood there with the two of them beside him, he stared into the camera and said “Groovy”, and both Ray and Dana got chills down their spines. They went on to explain how they were totally freaking out but didn’t want to come across as lame. Danny explained how they never thought the film would be a success and they all just beat the hell out of each other for the sake of the film and to make it as realistic as possible. Ted explained one of his most memorable moments about filming Evil Dead IIwas the scenes with the deadite Henrietta. They were in 100 degree weather and it had to be 103 inside her suit. He laughed as he told us that they gave him oxygen through a mask in between takes to make sure he wouldn’t pass out.

Towards the end of the Q&A a fan asked if Pablo and Kelly will ever hook up. Both actors responded by saying the fans will get what they want. Ray even made a remark that Kelly might see Pablo’s “boomstick”. The cast of the show also hinted to the audience that Season 3 of “Ash vs. Evil Dead” is going to be bringing in new characters, playing on family dynamics, and that there definitely will be blood, sex, and everything in-between.

After the panel, I walked the showroom floor to see if I could find some familiar faces. Conveniently two of my favorite vendors were directly next to each other, Forever Midnight and Little Shop of Gore. It was also a pleasure to see Punkstuff selling their beautifully printed horror merch as well as the excellent artwork done by Bat in Your Belfry. All of these guys can be found on Instagram and their merch is DEFINITELY worth checking out.

I was happy to see the turn out for SCC this year was much larger than previous years. It makes me incredibly proud to see such ‘coolness’ excelling in my home town which promises more cool stuff on the horizon. Next year, they may need a bigger venue.

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Devin March

Co-Host at GoreLords Podcast

Devin is a contributing writer for Nightmarish Conjurings and one of the three Co-hosts of the GoreLords Podcast. In his spare time (when it exists) he's usually cuddled up to his wife binge-watching a TV series, checking out new indie horror films or more recently playing Nintendo Switch. Devin is a huge fan of horror and macabre and it shows in his household. There is a room in his house dedicated to VHS tapes, Disneyland, Vintage Halloween and 80's horror.

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Latest posts by Devin March (see all)

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