Resident Evil Director Unprepared for Fan Backlash
Director Zach Cregger says he was not ready for the negative reaction from fans to his new Resident Evil film, which features an original character rather
Director Zach Cregger says he was unprepared for the fan backlash that greeted the first trailer for his new Resident Evil film. The director, known for horror hits like Barbarian, spoke to BBC Newsbeat about the criticism focused on his decision not to directly adapt the games' beloved characters and stories.
Cregger's film follows an original character named Bryan, played by Austin Abrams, who worked with the director on Weapons. Bryan is a courier delivering a package to Raccoon City hospital when he becomes trapped in a viral outbreak. The premise diverges from previous film adaptations, which has been a point of contention for some fans of the long-running video game series.
Critical Reception
Early critical reviews for the film have been largely positive. Several publications have praised Cregger's approach to translating the game's experience to cinema.
| Publication | Rating | Key Quote |
|---|---|---|
| NME | 3 stars | "the first great horror movie game adaptation... For a large chunk of the film's runtime" |
| The Jam Report | 4 stars | "understands adaptation as translation rather than imitation" |
| Looper | 8/10 | the best job I've seen of translating the experience of playing a video game |
Reviewer Jordan Bassett of NME noted that Bryan's encounters become repetitive as the film progresses. Despite this, the critical consensus suggests Cregger achieved his goal of honoring the feeling of playing the games.
A History of Adaptations
This is not the first attempt to bring Resident Evil to the screen. The franchise was first adapted in 2002 by writer-director Paul WS Anderson, who oversaw six films starring his wife, Milla Jovovich. Those films developed a cult following but were not critical successes. A 2021 reboot closely based on the games and a 2022 Netflix series also failed to impress audiences and critics.
The live-action film rights are owned by German production company Constantin Film. Some fans have blamed the company's reported agreement with game developer Capcom-which allegedly prevents films from being set in the games' timeline-for the perceived quality issues in past adaptations. Cregger told Newsbeat he had no contact with Capcom during production, stating, Nobody from Capcom ever reached out to me, ever, in any way. BBC Newsbeat was told there was behind-the-scenes coordination between the developer and the film's producers.
The Director's Perspective
Facing the online criticism, Cregger admitted to a degree of naivety. I think I was expecting people to be excited to see a Resident Evil movie that felt in the spirit of the games, he said. He argued that a direct retelling would also have drawn complaints. If I had delivered a faithful retelling of one of the stories in the games, I feel like those people would probably be upset with me for that too, Cregger explained. His focus remained on telling what he believed was the best story possible, regardless of preconceived fan expectations.
The film is poised for a successful opening weekend, following the commercial success of other poorly-reviewed video game adaptations like Minecraft and Super Mario Bros. The final verdict from the franchise's dedicated fanbase, however, is still pending.
