Thirty years ago a horror movie written and directed by Sam Raimi was released. That movie was THE EVIL DEAD. Five friends go up to a cabin in the woods where they find unspeakable evil lurking in the forest. They find the Necronomicon and the taped translation of the text. Once the tape is played, the evil is released. One by one, the teens are possessed. With only Ash remaining, he must survive the night and battle the evil dead.

We caught up with Ellen Sandweiss, one of the "Evil Dead Ladies", who played Cheryl, to talk about her role in The Evil Dead.

Horror News Network: You knew Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi since the 10th grade. Do you recall how that friendship formed?

Ellen Sandweiss: We were all involved in drama classes in high school and were also in plays together. Then they started asking me to be in some of their super-8 films.

Horror News Network:  You played the lead in Within the Woods, the precursor to Evil Dead. Was there any talk to having you be the surviving character of The Evil Dead?

Ellen Sandweiss: Not as far as I know - I assume they wanted Bruce to be the lead and thought it might be fun to torture me with monster makeup.

Horror News Network: Of course when you talk about the character of Cheryl, the infamous tree scene has to be mentioned. What was it like shooting that scene, and did you have any reservations about doing it?

Ellen Sandweiss: It wasn't written like that in the script, so I didn't have any reservations before we shot the scene. It really evolved while shooting from just an attack scene to a rape scene. I did have reservations while shooting it (plus it was pretty grueling) but I didn't really comprehend how it would end up looking in the film, plus I figured no one was going to see the film anyway, so it didn't matter!

Horror News Network: Another popular scene you were involved in was the pencil in the ankle scene. Can you talk a bit about that?

Ellen Sandweiss: That was fun! Of course it was a fake ankle and I couldn't actually see what I was doing because of the contacts in my eyes, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

Horror News Network: Your role especially required you to be physical. How draining was the whole process of shooting?

Ellen Sandweiss: Extremely draining. Especially given the fact that it was mostly in the middle of the night in the cold with no electricity or plumbing.

Horror News Network: How did the role of Cheryl affect your career?

Ellen Sandweiss: It gave me a certain notoriety within the genre and other horror directors later asked me to be in their films. Plus it forced me to have to do a lot of explaining to my children.

Horror News Network: "The Evil Dead" has become somewhat of a cult classic, even inspiring a musical. Did you have any idea 30 years ago that the movie would have such a long-lasting impact?

Ellen Sandweiss: None whatsoever! As I said, I thought nobody would ever see it. And I figured if anyone did see it, it would just be dismissed as an amateurish cheesy B-horror film.

Horror News Network: Are you surprised when you meet horror fans today, and see that they are still so fanatical about "The Evil Dead"?

Ellen Sandweiss: Yes, very surprised. But it's fun, especially to see the different generations get attached to it. I guess it's timeless.

Horror News Network: Where can fans find out more about you and your current projects?

Ellen Sandweiss:  www.ladiesoftheevildead.com and Ladies of the Evil Dead on facebook.

Horror News Network: Thank you SO much for your time, Ellen!

Ellen Sandweiss: Thank you very much - and thanks to all the readers out there!

Horror News Network: Thank you, Ellen! Comment on this interview in our forum.