While February’s report that the production team behind the upcoming live-action film adaptation of Resident Evil had basically been given carte blanche to tell the story they wanted may have caused some to worry, a new report has indicated that this may have been a wise decision. According to industry insider Daniel Richtman, a test screening for Zach Cregger’s take on Resident Evil went quite well.
“There was a test screening for Resident Evil. I hear it’s great,” he wrote on social media platform X. While this may come as welcome news for some, others have taken to social media to discuss how this could also potentially mean that, while it’s a good movie on its own, it might not be a faithful adaptation. However, just about everyone involved with the project has been tight-lipped about it, so no real details about its characters or plot have been revealed, at least for now.
Cregger had spoken in the past about how his Resident Evil movie would remain faithful to the core tenets of the franchise while still telling an original story. He also wants to make sure that the movie ends up being a love letter to the storied gaming franchise.
“Let me say this: this is not breaking the rules of the games,” Cregger said. “I am the biggest worshiper of the games, so I’m telling a story that is a love letter to the games and follows the rules of the games. It is obedient to the lore of the games, it’s just a different story. I’m not going to tell Leon’s story, because Leon’s story is told in the games. [Fans] already have that.”
He acknowledged that there might be some Resident Evil fans who want to see a faithful adaptation of one of the games’ stories. To them, however, he said, “They can play the game.” This might indicate that we might not get to see iconic characters like Leon S. Kennedy or Jill Valentine grace the big screen in the film, unfortunately.
As for the freedom Cregger has with the movie’s plot, the CEO of Resident Evil film rights holder Constantin Film, Oliver Berben, had spoken about it back in February.
“With Resident Evil, we have had an incredible journey with one of the most successful international IPs of more than a billion dollars in box office for many years and now we are creating something new, not just a new story idea, but to allow a new generation to take the IP into their own hands and form something different,” said Berben. To achieve this, Cregger has been given “the carte blanche to do whatever he wanted to do with that IP,” he explained.
The Resident Evil movie is being produced by PlayStation Productions alongside Constantin Film. The story is being co-written by Shay Hatten of John Wick: Chapter 4 and Army of the Dead fame, along with Zach Cregger, known for Barbarian, who is also the film’s director. Rather than being a new entry in the long-running Resident Evil movie franchise, however, Cregger’s film will be a reboot.