For years, the complaint against Resident Evil movies has been two-fold: they are either too far removed from the games (the “Alice” saga) or they try so hard to cram in every Easter egg that the plot collapses (Welcome to Raccoon City). By giving the Zach Cregger Resident Evil movie “carte blanche,” Constantin Film is betting on a third option: Atmosphere over adaptation.
Oliver Berben, CEO of Constantin Film, recently told Deadline that this new iteration is “far away from everything that is connected to Resident Evil,” simply because Cregger’s style is so distinct. The studio is prioritizing the director as the “IP” itself, trusting the man who made a basement in Detroit terrifying to do the same for the Spencer Mansion—or wherever this new nightmare takes place.
A New Generation of Survival Horror
Perhaps the most controversial—yet exciting—reveal is that this film will not feature familiar game characters. You won’t see Leon S. Kennedy’s flowing locks or Chris Redfield’s boulder-punching biceps here. Instead, the story focuses on new faces, including Austin Abrams (Euphoria) as a medical courier named Bryan, who finds himself in the wrong place at the peak of an outbreak.
The cast is rounded out by heavy hitters like Paul Walter Hauser, Zach Cherry, and Kali Reis. By focusing on “regular” people rather than super-cops and bio-weapon experts, Cregger is leaning back into the “survival” part of survival horror. As Cregger himself put it, “I’m not going to tell Leon’s story, because Leon’s story is told in the games. Fans already have that.”
Obedient to the Lore, Not the Script
Don’t mistake “original story” for “disrespectful to the games.” Cregger has been vocal about his love for the source material, specifically citing Resident Evil 2 and 4 as massive influences. He’s described the film as a “love letter” that is “obedient to the lore.”
Expect the rules of the world—the T-Virus, the corporate shadow of Umbrella, and the claustrophobic dread—to remain intact. Cregger is simply using those rules to play a different game. If his work on Barbarian is any indication, we can expect a movie that understands pacing, subverts tropes, and isn’t afraid to get weirdly, viscerally gross.
Is This the Cure or a New Mutation?
With the highly-anticipated Resident Evil Requiem game set to launch next week (and spoilers already flooding Reddit after early copies leaked!), the franchise is at a fever pitch. Zach Cregger’s “carte blanche” approach is a massive gamble, but after two decades of mixed results, a fresh perspective might be exactly what we need to finally bring the true horror of the games to the big screen.
Resident Evil reboot is set for release September 2026.
Are you disappointed that we won’t see Leon or Jill in the new movie, or are you ready for a Resident Evil story that finally feels unpredictable again? Let us know in the comments!
