Resident Evil film won’t ‘steal’ characters from the games, opting for an original story

While most are fans of the Resident Evil games, the series of films also have a rather large cult following. With news that a new Resident Evil movie is now in the works, fans have been speculating which characters may show up, with many expressing hopes that character Leon Kennedy will have a role. Unfortunately, it sounds like the new film may not feature any characters from the games.

Speaking with Entertainment Weekly in a recent interview, director, Zach Cregger, explained that his Resident Evil film will be a wholly original story and as a result, he won't be ‘stealing' established characters like Leon from the games. However, the film will still feel like it belongs in the grander Resident Evil universe.

Here is the relevant quote: “I'm not gonna steal Leon and put him in an original story. I think that would be presumptuous, but I respect the games enough where I'm going to tell a Resident Evil story in the Resident Evil canon that still leaves everything they love intact from the games. I think that when you see it, you'll understand how I can be obsessed with original ideas and still make a movie that is an IP-based thing. I know that doesn't make a lot of sense now, but I hope that it will later”.

The film, which is not yet in production, will take place around the events of Resident Evil 2 & 3. As the film won't be messing with the lore established in the games, we may only see passing references to what is going on elsewhere at that time.

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KitGuru Says: It is usually concerning when a director gets a big, well-loved IP and starts talking about being ‘original' with it. We've seen many instances where this line of thinking leads to adaptations that get fundamental things wrong, often with characters and events that don't make sense for the IP. However, in this instance, it does sound like the director has real love for the themes of Resident Evil and isn't just using the IP to dupe fans into buying cinema tickets. With that said, it is still too early on in the process to know for sure. 

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