Released in 1996, the firstResident Evilwas a smash-hit, selling like hotcakes while critics raved about its brilliant combination of tense survival-horror and tricky puzzles. A sequel was quickly commissioned, and the series went on to become one of the biggest in gaming.RELATED:Best ‘Resident Evil’ Games, RankedThe film industry saw potential in the franchise and quickly snapped up the film rights. The first film was released in 2002 to a mixed reception from fans, and theMilla Jovovich-centred series continued on for five more sequels. A reboot followed in 2021. Now Netflix is joining the undead party with anew live-action series ready to drop onto the service on July 14thlike Mr. X into a police station. With its impending release, here is how things currently stand in the live-action space.
‘Resident Evil: The Final Chapter’ (2016)
For a sequel dubbed the final entry,Resident Evil: The Final Chapteris pretty anti-climatic. In fact, the film completely bypasses the major battle for the White House that was set up at the finale of the previous film. Instead,The Final Chapterfinds Alice (Milla Jovovich) joining forces with a group of characters not from the game (again) to take down Umbrella once and for all (again). But hey, at least Claire is in it!
There are still some nice set-pieces, such as one involving a massive industrial fan that just wants to be hugged. Wesker also comes back, only to be finally defeated by his ultimate weakness checks notes doors. At least let Alice uppercut a boulder onto him or something. Despite being the weakest entry in the series,The Final Chapterstill did well at the box office and is one of thehighest-grossing horror films of the last decade.
‘Resident Evil: Afterlife’ (2010)
The fourth installment in the series finds Alice and her fellow survivors trying to reach Arcadia, a supposed safe haven. Along the way, she reunites with Claire Redfield (Ali Larter) and her brother Chris (Wentworth Miller), who is significantly smaller than the living tree trunk that is the in-game version.
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Resident Evil: Afterlifehas some enjoyable moments, such as the shower fight with the Executioner and the final confrontation with Wesker, which accurately captures the over-the-top action thatResident Evil 5was displaying at the time.Shawn Robertsalso gives a decent performance as the blonde baddie.Resident Evil: Afterlifeis available to stream on Hulu and Tubi.
‘Resident Evil: Extinction’ (2007)
Taking the action out of Raccoon City and placing it in a desert wasteland,Resident Evil: Extinctiontakes inspiration fromMad Maxas the survivors travel in convoys across the dangerous landscape. Alice leads a caravan of survivors to hopeful safety, facing new threats along the way.
The third entry,Extinctionis a dip in quality after the first two films. There is also a character named K-Mart (Spencer Locke) because she was found at a, you guessed it, K-Mart store. Hopefully, she is brought back in a future installment, so we can meet her sister Target.Resident Evil: Extinctionis available to stream on Hulu.
‘Resident Evil: Retribution’ (2012)
Resident Evil: Retributionstands as one of the better entries in the Alice series. After she is captured by Umbrella, Alice is held hostage inside a testing facility, which is home to a diverse range of biomes and creatures. This setting lets the film move at a good pace, as one minute our heroes are fighting in a rain-drenched Tokyo, while the next they are in the suburbs at the start of the zombie outbreak.
The film tries to win back jaded Resident Evil fans by finally introducing series favorites Leon S. Kennedy (Johann Urb), Ada Wong (Li Bingbing), and Barry Burton (Kevin Durand).Sienna Guilloryalso returns as Jill Valentine.Resident Evil: Retributionis available to stream on Hulu and Tubi.
‘Resident Evil’ (2002)
A smaller film than the sequels it spawned, the firstResident Evilis the closest the series came to horror before the franchise became all-out action spectacles, though Alice still literally wall-kicks a flying Doberman in the head. Waking up with no memory of who or where she is, Alice is soon captured by an elite mercenary team and forced to accompany them into an Umbrella facility that has fallen deathly silent.
A B-movie through and through,Resident Evilis still an entertaining zombie romp that features agreat horror soundtrack. Plus the laser hallway is the best part of the entire series, and Capcom even referenced the iconic scene inResident Evil 4.Resident Evilis available to stream on Hulu.
‘Resident Evil: Apocalypse’ (2004)
The strongest entry in theMilla Jovovich-led series,Resident Evil: Apocalypseis the only time they attempted to adapt one of the games directly. A retelling of the events ofResident Evil 3: Nemesis, the film takes place in Raccoon City as Umbrella’s T-Virus engulfs the city, causing a zombie outbreak.
Jill and Carlos (Oded Fehr) are introduced, as they attempt to escape the nightmare city while rescuing as many survivors as they can. Alice also aids their quest, whileResident Evil’s most iconic monster, Nemesis, hunts down our heroes. Like the original,Apocalypseis a blast to watch, and its nu-metal soundtrack (remember Killswitch Engage? They’re back, in B.O.W. form) helps transport audiences back to a time when a pandemic seemed farfetched.Resident Evil: Apocalypseis available to stream on Hulu and Tubi.
‘Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City’ (2021)
Guaranteed to be the most controversial placement on this list, it is fair to say thatResident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon Citydid not meet with an overly positive reception when it was released last year. However, the film is a genuine adaptation of the video game series and comes closer to recreating the iconic moments of Capcom’s crown jewel more than any other film ever has.
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Sure, the decision to combine the first two games into one film proved detrimental, butWelcome to Raccoon Citystill does an admirable job bringing both scenarios to the big screen. The film also refuses to insert new characters like Alice into the plot and instead gives the game’s Big Four (Chris, Jill, Leon, and Claire) center stage. Most of the portrayals are faithful, though Leon definitely leans into his rookie status way harder than the game does, and the film conjures up an oppressive tone as the virus sweeps across the city’s deserted streets.Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon Cityis available to stream on Starz.
George A. Romero’s ‘Resident Evil 2’ Commercial (1997)
Back in the late 1990s, whenResident Evilwas beginning to take over the video game space, the godfather of zombie filmsGeorge A. Romero, took an interest in the property. Initially hired to direct the first film, Romero’s script stayed mostly faithful to the original game. The studio was put off by the script’s excessive violence and heavy action focus. Despite numerous rewrites, Romero left the project due to creative differences.
The zombie king still gifted us this live-action trailer forResident Evil 2however, which only aired on Japanese TV.A 30-second recreation of the tense atmosphere of the game, the ad finds Leon (Brad Renfro) and Claire (Adrienne Frantz) seeking shelter in the game’s police station as Raccoon City is overrun around them. This small commercial is a fun look at how the classic survival series would look in reality, five years before the first film, and gives a glimpse of how Romero would have handled the property.
