For a lot of the final 20 years, the Resident Evil films had been outlined by the six movies directed by Paul W.S. Anderson, with Milla Jovovich within the main function as Alice. These films revamped $1 billion worldwide. Nevertheless, the 2021 reboot, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon Metropolis, solely earned $42 million worldwide.
Barbarian and Weapons director Zach Cregger has been given the reins for a brand-new Resident Evil film. After co-founding the comedy troupe The Whitest Youngsters U’ Know and starring in sitcoms, Cregger has emerged as one of the crucial profitable horror administrators of this technology. His involvement with this undertaking sparked a bidding struggle, which was in the end gained by Sony Footage, the studio that launched the earlier seven movies within the franchise.
Most of the particulars about Cregger’s Resident Evil film stay beneath wraps for now. However GameSpot has put collectively a information to every part we all know concerning the Resident Evil reboot to date.
Who’s starring in Resident Evil?
Austin Abrams is at present the one (most likely) confirmed solid member for the brand new movie. Abrams not too long ago labored with Cregger on Weapons, and he has some expertise with zombies from his time on The Strolling Useless. He’s additionally identified for his function as Ethan Daley in HBO’s Euphoria.
Will established Resident Evil heroes seem within the movie?
Cregger has indicated that he isn’t planning to make use of any of the RE heroes in main roles.
“I am telling a narrative that may be a love letter to the video games and follows the foundations of the video games,” defined Cregger. “It’s obedient to the lore of the video games; it is only a totally different story. I am not going to inform Leon’s story, as a result of Leon’s story is informed within the video games. [Fans] have already got that.”
“[Resident Evil is] an authentic screenplay,” added Cregger in a separate interview. “It is a bizarre story. I wrote it and I really like the story. It has nothing to do with any of the opposite Resident Evil films. If I do my job, it would really feel contemporary and edgy and peculiar.”
Will the tone of Resident Evil comply with the instance of the earlier films?
In response to Cregger, he hasn’t seen any of the Resident Evil films. As an alternative of following their instance, he intends to recreate the tone of dread from the video games.
“I have never seen the [earlier Resident Evil] films, however they do not appear to vow that feeling [of dread],” mentioned Cregger. “So I wished to write down a narrative that will simply actually lean into that. Honor the games–be true to the lore of what is going on on. However I am not telling any of the tales of the video games. It is a separate story that simply occurs to exist in that territory.”
“If there are individuals on the market who’re rabid followers of the film franchise, they’re most likely probably not ready for what I’m going to be doing. However I believe followers of the video games are going to be stoked,” he mentioned.
In an interview with Double Toasted, Cregger mentioned his Resident Evil film will likely be “true to the expertise” of the video video games, and possibly “lives on the planet” of Resident Evil 2 and three, however that it adheres extra to the tone of Resident Evil 4. The sport shouldn’t be a direct adaptation of any Resident Evil sport, nonetheless.
Cregger mentioned the video video games, too, do not have a set lore and are not inflexible with timelines or settings. “I do not suppose I’m taking any extra liberties with this [movie] than the sport franchise does. I believe I’m coloring inside the strains,” he mentioned.
“I’ve by no means seen a film prefer it,” he added. “I’m past excited making this.”
The director added that his sense of tone and his normal filmmaking sensibilities honed with Barbarian and Weapons will come by way of in Resident Evil, albeit on an even bigger scale and with an even bigger funds.
“It takes place on the planet of the video games, however most significantly, the journey you may have as a viewer watching this film goes to be much like the journey you’ve as a participant if you play these video games. What which means is it follows one protagonist from level A to level B as they descend deeper and deeper and deeper into hell,” he mentioned. “As somebody who has performed I do not know what number of hundreds and hundreds of hours of Resident Evil, I simply really feel like I understand how that pacing can go, and it is inherently cinematic. I really feel like there’s a nice film that may dwell inside this world and inside that type of pacing. I’m actually, actually pumped concerning the story that we get to inform right here.”
Lastly, Cregger confirmed the capturing schedule for Resident Evil, saying cameras are attributable to start rolling this October in Prague and proceed by way of the tip of January 2026. Why Prague? Cregger cited the town’s beneficiant tax rebates and different components. “It is the appropriate place,” he mentioned.
When will the brand new Resident Evil film be launched?
Resident Evil will hit theaters on September 18, 2026, just some months after the sport franchise celebrates its thirtieth anniversary.
