Milla Jovovich may have been the face of the Resident Evil franchise from 2002 to 2016, but that canon has ended, and the Franchise is looking to rejuvenate its box-office presence.
Several attempts have been made in the past few years with an animated film and a series, but now it looks like one new auteur will tackle the franchise, and every big studio wants in.
Zach Cregger and Resident Evil
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Barbarian director Zach Cregger is in a bidding war with several studios who want the rights to a reboot of Resident Evil written and directed by Cregger. While no specifics have been revealed about the remake, it’s said that Cregger’s version will return to the horror roots of the first games, which came out in 1996.
PlayStation Productions will produce the movie alongside Constantin Film, which has held the screen rights to Resident Evil since the '90s. John Wick writer Shay Hatten will also co-write the script with Cregger.
Regarding the bidding war, it’s said that four major studios want to get their hands on the project, two of them being Netflix—who produced the poorly received Resident Evil series—and Warner Bros. Pictures.
The Original Film Series
Though the original Resident Evil franchise was considered pretty campy, they all made serious bank at the box office, with seven films earning upwards of a billion dollars.
The Milla Jovovich movies (most of which were directed by Paul W.S. Anderson) were Resident Evil (2002), Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004), Resident Evil: Extinction (2007), Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010), Resident Evil: Retribution (2012), and Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2016).
A reboot had been attempted in 2021 with Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City, but the movie was poorly received.
When it comes to Cregger, he’s recently been getting a lot of attention since Barbarian dropped. He’s been considered to have a pretty unique sense when it comes to horror comedy, and his attachment to the Resident Evil project has so many people interested in this reboot.
Games vs. Movies
Though the Resident Evil franchise may have a unique reputation when it comes to the box office, its success pales in comparison when it comes to video games. Resident Evil is still one of the strongest titles for Capcom, and they’ve managed to earn a lot with the new games and remakes of the original titles.
With the release of Resident Evil 4, it seems like Capcom is out of games to remake for the new consoles, but Code: Veronica is still a possibility.
Though they have an original timeline to follow, it would be great if they could find some synergy with the upcoming movie reboot. After all, PlayStation Productions is expected to have a more cohesive connection between the movie and the game.
No release date has been announced for the Resident Evil reboot.