Bruce Campbell (born June 22, 1958, Royal Oak, Michigan) is an American actor. Campbell is best known for his starring role as Ash in the Evil Dead trilogy of horror/slapstick movies. His friends have been known to say that his head shots are the best in the industry, and that he is one of the greatest reverse actors in the business.

Bruce Campbell began acting as a teenager and soon began making small Super 8 movies with friends. After meeting Sam Raimi in high school the two became good friends and started making movies together. A few years and at least fifty movies later, they got together with other family and friends and began work on The Evil Dead. Bruce was the star of the movie as well as working behind the camera, receiving a "co-executive producer" credit; Sam Raimi was the director. Four years later the movie became a cult hit in England, leading to American success and two sequels.

Bruce Campbell has appeared in many of Sam Raimi's films outside of the Evil Dead series, usually in small roles. He was supposed to star in Darkman but the studio reportedly insisted on Liam Neeson. Bruce Campbell stayed on behind the scenes, credited as "additional voice recording," and appears in the film's final shot. He has also had several small parts in the movies of Joel and Ethan Coen (Joel was an editor on The Evil Dead). He is generally described as a "B-movie star," often appearing in films that go straight to video or cable TV.

Outside of film, Bruce Campbell has appeared in a number of television series. While he starred in The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. and Jack of All Trades, he is better known for his supporting role as the recurring character Autolycus on the fantasy series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Xena: Warrior Princess. He also directed a number of episodes of Hercules and Xena.

Campbell's autobiography, If Chins Could Kill: Confessions of a B Movie Actor (Campbell has a large chin) traces his career as an actor in low-budget movies and television. The paperback adds a chapter about the reaction of fans at book signings. He is currently writing another book, Make Love the Bruce Campbell Way, a humorous look at relationships, and books about relationships.

Film credits

• Bubba Nosferatu (forthcoming)
• Sky High (2005)
• "Alien Apocalypse" (2005)
• Spider-Man 2 (2004)
• The Ladykillers (2004)
• "Serving Sara" (2002)
• Bubba Ho-Tep (2002)
• Spider-Man (2002)
• The Majestic (2001)
• Escape From L.A. (1996)
• Congo (1995)
• The Hudsucker Proxy (1994)
• Army of Darkness (1993)
• Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn (1987)
• Crimewave (1985)
• The Evil Dead (1982)

Television credits

• Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman
• The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr.
• Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
• Xena: Warrior Princess
• Jack of All Trades
• Ellen
• Homicide: Life on the Street
• The X-Files (season 6, episode 7: Terms of Endearment)
• Megas XLR (Guest starring as Magnanimous in two episodes)

External links

• The Official Bruce Campbell Website
• Bruce Campbell filmography

Sources

• If Chins Could Kill: Confessions of a B Movie Actor (ISBN 0312242646),