While Capcom’s Resident Evil video game franchise has only gotten better throughout the years, film adaptations of the horrors in Raccoon City and beyond have not always fared as well. For decades, fans endured loose adaptations that traded claustrophobic survival horror for over-the-top action blockbusters. However, with Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil now playing in theaters, things are finally about to change for moviegoers and die-hard gamers alike.
A Record-Breaking Start at the Box Office
According to Deadline, Cregger’s Resident Evil is already shambling toward the best previews ever for the franchise, pulling in a staggering $8M to $9M+ in Thursday screenings alone.
Initially, analysts predicted a $40M to $50M weekend for Resident Evil. Still, it looks like the latest (and best) adaptation of the beloved survival horror experience could make even more as word-of-mouth spreads! In addition to pulling in an impressive sum in Thursday previews, Cregger’s film posted a series-best critical score on Rotten Tomatoes (now sitting at an astonishing 96% certified fresh), with an equally impressive audience score of 91%. Before today, the previous best audience score was for Paul W.S. Anderson’s original 2002 film, which capped out at a modest 67%.
A New Horror Classic for Fans and Newcomers Alike
Our editor-in-chief, Chris Bumbray, reviewed Resident Evil for the site after seeing the movie at TIFF. While Chris is unfamiliar with the game franchise, he still had a blast with Cregger’s film from start to finish. The fact that Chris can walk into the experience with no prior affection for the franchise and walk out of the theater calling it a “new horror classic” speaks volumes about Cregger’s abilities as a storyteller and director.
“As for director Zach Cregger, with each new film, he seems more assured,” Chris wrote in his Resident Evil review. “While I enjoyed Barbarian, I felt it fell apart in the second half, while Weapons was a significant improvement. Resident Evil feels like he’s truly becoming a master of his craft, and this will become a giant blockbuster that hopefully Hollywood learns the right lessons from.”
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