The upcoming Resident Evil movie reboot is called Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City, as revealed by its director.
Director Johannes Roberts — known for his work on 47 Meters Down — confirmed the title in an interview with IGN. Of course, there’s a lot of Resident Evil adaptations in the works at the moment. It’s easy to find yourself confused. Firstly, let’s clear up that Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City is in no way connected to the previous movie franchise directed by Paul W.S. Anderson, starring Milla Jovovich. Moreover, it’s not connected to either of Netflix’s anime project Infinite Darkness. Instead, Welcome to Raccoon City is very much its own thing, with the hope that it will kick off a brand new movie franchise. It will adapt the first two games in the franchise.
The live-action Resident Evil reboot movie will officially be called Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City.
Here’s what we know about how director Johannes Roberts plans to adapt some classic Resident Evil stories for the silver screen: https://t.co/NMg8O7073N pic.twitter.com/d4x5f6ljs0
— IGN (@IGN) March 21, 2021
As expected, the upcoming adaptation will follow the main characters from the original games. Some characters include Chris and Claire Redfield, Jill Valentine, and Leon S. Kennedy. As well as familiar characters, it will welcome back some iconic locations such as the mansion and the police station.
Speaking to IGN at SXSW about his version of Resident Evil, Roberts noted the dark tone of the games as a big source of inspiration:
“The big thing for this movie is tone. The thing I loved about the games is they were just scary as hell and that is very much what I wanted to. That atmosphere — it’s rain, it’s constantly dark, it’s creepy. Raccoon City is kind of this rotten character in the movie and that sort of atmosphere in the games I wanted to put in [the film].”
Welcome to Raccoon City already has some confirmed cast members! These include Kaya Scodelario as Claire Redfield, Hannah John-Kamen as Jill Valentine, Robbie Amell as Chris Redfield, and Tom Hopper as Albert Wesker.
The movie does not have a premiere date yet. However, things seem to be coming together. In the meantime, Netflix’s Infinite Darkness premieres later this year. Are you down to watch the Resident Evil reboot? Let me know in the comments below!