‘Evil Dead 2’ Star Danny Hicks Reveals Stage 4 Cancer Diagnosis

Fans of Evil Dead II were saddened to learn that Danny Hicks, who played Jake in the 1987 comedy horror film, was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. He shared the news in a Facebook post on Friday, leading off his message by writing that he has “some bad news” to reveal.

Hicks said that he has “approximately 1 to 3 years to live.” He added that he “sure as hell packed a whole bunch of living into my 68 years.” In addition to Evil Dead II, Hicks also appeared in Darkman and Intruder. The Michigan native wrote that he doesn’t have many regrets in life, “I got no change coming back that’s for sure.” He shortly was flooded with comments from fans of his on his Facebook page, one responding, “Such professionalism in acting and yet so light-hearted in person.” Another told Hicks that he is “one of my favorite character actors… and one of my daily inspirations.”

Along with those titles, Hicks most recently appeared in small roles like The Blood Hunter and Elder Island, which came out in 2019 and 2016, respectively. While Hicks only appeared in one of the Evil Dead movies, the series has four films in total and a television series. Created by Sam Raimi, the first installment came out in 1981 before its sequel six years later. Army of Darkness followed in 1992 and a reboot of Evil Dead was drum up in 2013. The Ash vs. Evil Dead series ran from 2015 to 2018 on Starz.

In an interview with Bloody Disgusting, Sam Raimi, the creator of the franchise, revealed he has plans for another iteration. He shared that it was in the early stages of development at the time. Bruce Campbell, who has appeared in the movies as one of its stars, Ash Williams, spoke at the Fan Expo in Vancouver earlier in the year where he said production is happening and that he will be in, although he won’t be doing so in a starring capacity, “Sam Raimi’s handpicked the next guy to make another creepy Evil Dead film… it just won’t have Ash.”

There have yet to be any further announcements in regards to the latest installment in the cult classic franchise. With all that is going on in the country with the coronavirus and the impact it has had on Hollywood, it’s likely that wherever the film was at came to a halt.