Resident Evil 9 Will Star Leon and Jill as Protagonists

There’s never any shortage of excitement surrounding the future of the Resident Evil franchise, and though the series’ next mainline title is yet to be officially unveiled, a host of alleged new details on its story, setting, gameplay features, and more have emerged courtesy of a fresh leak.

The information comes from Biohazard Declassified, collated in a video uploaded by Residence of Evil, and claims that Resident Evil 9 will feature two returning fan-favourite characters as its protagonists in the form of Leon S. Kennedy and Jill Valentine. The former will look similar to how he did in the 2012 animated film Resident Evil: Damnation, while the latter will look the same as 2023 film Dead Island, while sporting a tactical outfit not unlike what she wore in Resident Evil 5: Lost in Nightmares.

Leon and Jill will allegedly be joined by another couple of beloved returning characters in Chris Redfield and Barry Burton, who will be supporting Leon and Jill during their missions behind the scenes via radio calls. Rosemary Winters will also be mentioned by Chris, including as a potential way to fight against Mutamycete by using her blood to create a vaccine for the residents of the island.

The game is allegedly set four years after the events of Resident Evil Village (which means it will take place several years before the Shadows of Rose DLC), and will serve as a continuation of the Resident Evil 7 and Village storyline. It sees DSO agent Leon and BSAA agent Jill heading to island to investigate reports of the mass production of clones of the biological weapon Eveline using the Mutamycete.

As per the leak, the island itself is going to consist of a number of different locations, including caves, an abandoned hospital, residents’ houses (both abandoned and otherwise), an abandoned factory, labs, a dark forest, and a temple. Interestingly, previous leaks have claimed that Resident Evil 9 is going to build on Dragon’s Dogma 2’s open world tech, and this certainly seems to align with those claims.

It’s claimed Blue Umbrella will also return and will assist both the DSO and the BSAA with their ongoing investigation. Meanwhile, Jill and Leon will allegedly both be infected by the Mutamycete during their mission, following which they will often hear Eveline’s voice in their head. The primary antagonist of the game is said to be a man called Mr. Simon, who supervises the mass production of Eveline’s clones.

Throughout the island, meanwhile, players will fight more advanced forms of zombies that can run and use axes, knives, and other weapons, similar to Resident Evil 4’s Gonados. Island residents that have been infected by the Mold now worship the moon, which also entails getting moon tattoos on their arms, singing to the moon, and more. Beyond the zombies, Resident Evil 9 will also once again feature stalker enemies for both Leon and Jill, with the latter being pursued by an enemy called the Goat Man.

The report goes on to claim that playtests for Resident Evil 9 were held twice this year, with a test in April seeing Jill exploring an abandoned hospital, and a playtest in September finding Leon in a forest.

Earlier this year, it was announced that Koshi Nakashini, the director of Resident Evil 7, is returning to helm Resident Evil 9. Though he did not share any details, he called the game “substantial”. Past leaks have claimed that the game has been in development since as far back as 2018, touting the longest development cycle and largest development budget for a Resident Evil game to date.