Spare a thought for Resident Evil Requiem’s development team, especially when it comes to rumors of Leon S. Kennedy being a playable character. Between discussing his absence, especially with Grace Ashcroft entering the spotlight, and telling fans to calm down before believing rumors, it’s a topic that remains as hot as ever.
Nevertheless, producer Masato Kumazawa still encourages fans to “believe what they would like to believe.” But if you’ve seen any “leaked” images, especially one with Leon sporting an eyepatch, they’re not real.
Speaking to Stevivor about the iconic hero’s inclusion in the sequel, Kumazawa said, “Apart from any official information that Capcom has released, the rest is more detective work [on the part of players]. So I would suggest to please not take everything at face value.
“Considering that now is the time when AI [can be used to make] videos and photos, we don’t know what’s right or what’s wrong. It’s just that players are free to believe what they would like to believe; what I’d like to tell is that, please, unless it’s officially released from Capcom, we can’t give you any confirmation.” He then went on to call the previously-mentioned image of Leon and claims of it being a new costume, “fake news.”
Of course, much like when the team said that Grace is the “new main character,” Kumazawa didn’t outright deny Leon’s inclusion. With claims of a reveal at some point in the future and some apparently significant gameplay segments for the latter, the wait continues for official confirmation, followed by even more furtive theorizing.
Resident Evil Requiem launches on February 27th, 2026, for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, Nintendo Switch 2 and PC for $69.99 (with pre-orders including a Lady Dimitrescu outfit for Grace). Capcom has no plans for a demo currently, but for those worried about performance woes similar to Monster Hunter Wilds, it assures that won’t be the case.
