Zach Cregger answers ‘Resident Evil’ movie criticism: “They will be thoroughly convinced”
With fans already skeptical, Zach Cregger insists his Resident Evil movie will win them over — and says the way he’s building it will make the case.
On the “Seen on the Screen with Jacqueline Coley” podcast, director Zach Cregger pushed back on the idea that his upcoming Resident Evil is just a generic horror film with a famous logo slapped on. He said the worries are understandable — and premature.
“When they watch the movie, they will be thoroughly convinced that that is not the case.”
Cregger’s approach isn’t a straight retelling of a game like Resident Evil 2, and it won’t roll out familiar faces like Leon S. Kennedy. Instead, he’s aiming for the games’ survival- horror feel — that under-equipped, constantly-in-danger scramble that defines the series — rather than recreating a specific plot beat-for-beat.
The film centers on a brand-new lead: Bryan, a medical courier whose routine delivery turns into a fight to stay alive when an outbreak erupts. Cregger has also said he avoided watching the previous Resident Evil movies so he could build this take off the games themselves, not earlier screen versions.
- Original story set in the Resident Evil universe
- New protagonist: Bryan, a medical courier
- No Leon S. Kennedy or direct adaptation of RE2
- Focus on survival-horror tension and resourcefulness
- Release date: September 18, 2026
Why not adapt the games?
Addressing backlash after the first teaser, Cregger said he knows many fans want to see specific game storylines — but argued a literal adaptation could let those same fans down. In a recent conversation with Curry Barker, he framed it as both a creative choice and a fan-service trap to avoid.
“But if I did that (following the same pattern) I don’t think I’d be creatively fulfilled, and I don’t even think they would enjoy it. If I just did the story of the games, I think the most diehard fans would be bummed.”
He’s previously described the movie’s form as “one gigantic sequence,” and said its structure borrows from in-game design — another sign he’s chasing how Resident Evil feels to play, not just what it looks like on a plot summary.
The movie arrives September 18, 2026.