The Iconic '80s Horror Film You Didn't Know Was Edited By A Coen Brother

Over the years, brothers Joel and Ethan Coen have produced some of the most iconic and beloved movies of all time. The directing duo first made their claim to fame with the absurd Nicolas Cage-led comedy "Raising Arizona," and they continued to deepen their legacy with hits like "Fargo," "O Brother, Where Art Thou?", and "The Big Lebowski."

The brothers seem to hop between genres effortlessly, directing a brutal neo-noir Western like "No Country for Old Men" one year, and directing a black comedy like "Burn After Reading" the next. The variety of themes, stories, and characters featured in their films make it so no two Coen brothers movies are alike – something that can't be said for most Hollywood directors these days. 

There's no doubt that the Coen brothers' ability to shift and meld genres is part of what makes their films so unique, but it still might surprise some fans to learn that one of the brothers has actually worked in the horror genre as well.

After college, Joel Coen began working as a production assistant throughout the film industry as a way to gain more experience. As it happens, he ended up working as a crew member on the set of Sam Raimi's 1981 horror classic "The Evil Dead." The film follows five college students who visit an old cabin in the woods while on vacation. There, they discover a supernatural audio tape that causes their trip to erupt into utter chaos.

Joel Coen was working as an assistant editor (and protégé) to editor Edna Paul, who Raimi brought on to help with the film's post-production. Joel assisted with the editing of "The Evil Dead," and Far Out Magazine claims he even had a hand in the film's "famous shed scene." During the editing process, Joel met Raimi, and the two became fast friends. Raimi would go on to collaborate with the Coen brothers on the 1985 film "Crimewave," and even gave them some passing advice about how to secure funding for their directorial debut — 1984's "Blood Simple" (via Vanity Fair). 

Coen's involvement with "The Evil Dead" is certainly a neat piece of trivia, though perhaps making a horror movie wasn't exactly his favorite sort of project — as he hasn't explored that particular genre since.