It can’t be easy being covered in blood and special effects make-up while swinging for the fences playing a deadite, but Evil Dead Rise director Lee Cronin found someone who was very much up for the challenge in Alyssa Sutherland. In fact, Sutherland couldn’t have understood the assignment any better. Her deadite Ellie is downright brilliant and will no doubt go down Evil Dead history as one of the most unforgettable forces in the franchise.

Due out in theaters on April 21st, Evil Dead Rise relocates the series from a cabin in the woods to a Los Angeles apartment building. That’s where Sutherland’s Ellie lives with her three kids — Danny (Morgan Davies), Bridget (Gabrielle Echols), and Kassie (Nell Fisher). While Ellie’s sister Beth (Lily Sullivan) is in town for a visit, a long-lost Necronomicon resurfaces, sends its evil straight into Ellie, and sparks maximum bloodshed, carnage, and utter chaos.

In celebration of Evil Dead Rise’s upcoming nationwide theatrical release, Sutherland joined me for an episode of Collider Ladies Night Pre-Party to recap her journey in the industry thus far including making the pivot from modeling to acting, joining the Vikings ensemble, and more. We’ll have that full conversation for you when Evil Dead Rise arrives on April 21st, but in the meantime, we’ve got a little tease of Sutherland’s lessons learned while getting the one-of-a-kind acting opportunity to play a deadite.

Image via Warner Bros.

While discussing the dos and don’ts of bringing a deadite to life on screen, Sutherland took a moment to emphasize how important it was to have a collaborative partner like director Lee Cronin when tackling the role.

“One do is to do it with Lee Cronin. Do it with Lee Cronin. The stuff that he wrote for Ellie was so wonderful, and scary stuff to work with. The first time I read ‘mommy’s with the maggots now’ I was like, ‘Oh dear, that’s going to be requiring some real thought,’ because what a trap and I do not want to fall into the trap. It’s like you have to go away from the obvious with lines like that. So work with Lee Cronin, and his taste mirrors my taste when it comes to performances. We were always on the same page.”

As for her deadite-playing don’t, Sutherland couldn’t have come up with a better answer.

“The don’t as a deadite — don’t take it too seriously. Don’t. It’s an Evil Dead film. It is meant to be fun. It’s meant to be entertaining and what a privilege to be part of a franchise like that. It’s a pretty neat place to be.”

Looking for even more from Sutherland on her Evil Dead Rise experience? Be sure to keep an eye out for her full 27-minute Ladies Night interview dropping right here on Collider on April 21st. It’s absolutely packed with information on her deadite transformation, how certain personal feelings influenced her performance, and why she wanted to make sure that she brought a sense of joy to deadite Ellie. Stay tuned for that and a Collider Ladies Night interview with her co-star, Lily Sullivan, coming soon!