Resident Evil movie franchise reboot will tell an origin story with ‘close ties’ to the first two games
Film set in Raccoon City in 1998 will “explore the secrets that lay within the walls of the Spencer Mansion”
Constantin Film has announced plans to reboot the Resident Evil film franchise with an origin story faithful to the first two entries in Capcom’s survival horror series.
Taking place on a fateful night in Raccoon City in 1998, the film is being written and directed by Johannes Roberts (47 Meters Down).
It will star Kaya Scodelario (Maze Runner) as Claire Redfield, Hannah John-Kamen (Ant-Man and the Wasp) as Jill Valentine, Robbie Amell (Upload) as Chris Redfield, Tom Hopper (The Umbrella Academy) as Albert Wesker, Avan Jogia (Zombieland: Double Tap) as Leon S. Kennedy, and Neal McDonough (Yellowstone) as William Birkin.
“With this film, I really wanted to go back to the original, first two games and the associated terrifying experience that I had when I first played them,” said Roberts. “And at the same time, I am telling the story of a small, dying American town that will appear both familiar and relevant to today’s audiences.”
The previous six Resident Evil movies, which were all written and/or directed by Paul W. S. Anderson and starred Milla Jovovich, grossed $1.2 billion at the global box office following the first one’s release in 2002.
Constantin Film producer Robert Kulzer, who also worked on those films, said: “After a dozen games, six live action films and hundreds of pages of fanfiction, we felt compelled to go back to 1998 to explore the secrets that lay within the walls of the Spencer Mansion and hidden from Raccoon City.”
Netflix announced a live action series based on Resident Evil in August, which is also developed by Constantin Film. According to the Netflix‘s synopsis, the show will feature “the Wesker kids” as they uncover secrets inside of New Raccoon City. Albert Wesker is one of the primary antagonists in the Resident Evil games.
The next entry in the long-running game series, Resident Evil Village, is scheduled to be released this year for PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC.
