The hype for Resident Evil is at an all-time high now that Requiem is only months away from its release this February 2025, along with a special presentation at Gamescom 2025 for new details. Fans are also looking forward to the franchise’s next big step: Zach Cregger’s attempt at adapting Capcom’s survival horror series into a competent film.
The Plot for the Upcoming Resident Evil Movie
The movie is still about a year away, but Zach Cregger, director of acclaimed horror titles such as Barbarian and the recently released Weapons, has shared new details about what his adaptation will be.
X (formerly Twitter) user @DanielRPK revealed the logline for Cregger’s Resident Evil movie: “Bryan (played by Austin Abrams) is a laid-back organ courier sent on a late-night delivery to Raccoon City General Hospital. While driving through a snowy mountain road, he accidentally hits a strange woman with his car. She survives, but something is very wrong.”
The story will follow Bryan as he becomes trapped in a full-blown outbreak involving “horrifying tentacle-based mutations” and “bio-engineered monstrosities.”
While the premise may sound similar to previous Resident Evil movie setups, it offers an early glimpse into the tone the film is aiming for. Setting the story between Resident Evil 1 and Resident Evil 3 feels like a smart choice, as it allows for an original narrative that unfolds alongside the main series events while offering a fresh perspective on one of the franchise’s most pivotal moments.
Zach Cregger as a Director
Zach Cregger’s prominence as a filmmaker grew with 2022’s sleeper horror hit Barbarian. In that film, his unusual pacing and shifting character points of view created a constant sense of dread, keeping audiences unsure of what to expect. His movies are often described as “rollercoaster rides” filled with unpredictable twists, sharp tonal shifts, and bursts of tension.
His follow-up, Weapons, is considered one of this year’s best horror titles, standing alongside Michael B. Jordan’s Sinners and Danny Boyle’s 28 Years Later. It follows a group of schoolchildren who mysteriously vanished in one night, evoking a sense of an uncanny feel to an already bizarre premise. The film’s POV-style storytelling could be a perfect fit for Resident Evil, allowing multiple character perspectives to intersect with the protagonist’s journey through an infested Raccoon City.
How the Movie Fits into the Overall Canon
Many fans have wondered if the upcoming movie will fit into Resident Evil’s established canon. In an interview with Variety, Cregger described himself as “a big worshipper of the games” and expressed his intent to create his own version of the story while staying true to the series’ lore.
Although he did not confirm that the film will strictly follow canon, he acknowledged the franchise’s eccentric, sometimes over-the-top lore and promised to respect it. Bryan’s character, for instance, is an entirely new protagonist rather than a reimagining of Leon or Claire. Cregger believes their stories have already been told in the games and do not need to be retold.
He explained, ”Those games pioneered something special. The pacing of those games is so unique and effective, and just being locked in with one character moving from point A to point B, knowing you’re going to pass through this gauntlet of terror, and you’ve got to be methodical and thoughtful about it. That’s cool. That’s cinematic. So I want to tell the story in the world of the games that honors the lore of the games, but it’s a new story.”
Cregger’s style could blend well with Resident Evil’s signature mix of horror and camp. His films often move between terrifying and darkly humorous moments, and he has shown a strong commitment to crafting character arcs in inventive ways.
Breaking the Bad Movie Adaptations
It is worth noting that Resident Evil’s history with live-action adaptations is… rocky. This will be the third major attempt, and the previous two are often remembered as “guilty pleasures” at best. Most failed to capture the series’ survival horror tone, instead delivering inconsistent interpretations that ignored much of the games’ lore.
A great Resident Evil movie does not need to mimic third-person or first-person gameplay. It needs to be effective — packed with zombies, bio-engineered threats, and a convincingly grim Raccoon City. Past adaptations often disregarded the source material entirely, with directors choosing spectacle over substance. I’m looking at you, Paul W.S. Anderson.
The logline for Cregger’s version already shows promise. There will be no superpowered Milla Jovovich, no teen drama like the Netflix series, and no John Wick-style action sequences like the CGI films.
Zach Cregger has a real chance to finally give fans a faithful Resident Evil film, and it will be exciting to see how his unique style and direction bring that vision to life this September 16, 2026.
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