Do we like Ted Raimi?
Our score: 6 out of 10. Nothing harmful or dodgy turned up across a long career, but little good is documented, so it stops short of the top end.
Ted Raimi is the younger brother of Spider-Man director Sam Raimi and screenwriter Ivan Raimi. He started out in Sam's debut, The Evil Dead, as one of the “Fake Shemps”, then played the possessed Henrietta in Evil Dead II and several roles in Army of Darkness.
Then came the long run of character work. He played Joxer the Mighty on Xena: Warrior Princess and Hercules, which SlashFilm says he understood completely as the black sheep comic relief, and starred in all three seasons of seaQuest DSV as Lt. Tim O'Neill. He also popped up as Hoffman in Sam's Spider-Man films.
He has kept busy outside the family business too, with voice work on Code Monkeys, guest spots on Supernatural and Creepshow, and a return to the Evil Dead world as Chet in Ash vs. Evil Dead. It is a very horror-and-fantasy-shaped career, and a loved one among genre fans.
On the harm test, we searched for anything he has said or done about LGBTQ+ people, women, migrants, vaccines or the climate, and for the company he keeps. Nothing came up. His recent work is a talk show and genre projects, with no sign of the culture-war slide we watch for. An empty file isn't a glowing reference, but it's a clean one.
The good-person test is the same story. We found no convictions, lawsuits or allegations against him in the reporting. The only legal fights in the results belonged to his brother Sam over the Evil Dead name, not to Ted.
The recent thing is a fun one. Your Dearest, Darkest Friend is a darkly whimsical Screambox talk show where guests wander a creaky mansion, drinks are served, and Ted performs alongside puppets. He told Fangoria he made it for what he thought horror fans would like to see.