Zach Cregger's Resident Evil movie trailer is absolutely stuffed with callbacks to the games, and it's the clearest signal yet that this adaptation understands what makes the series tick. The new trailer, released by Sony Pictures, doesn't just show a zombie—it shows a typewriter, a box of Heavy Field shotgun shells, a character uttering "Raccoon City" with a straight face, and even a creepy zombie baby. If you were worried this reboot would feel like a generic action-horror flick, the trailer is here to prove you wrong.
This isn't the Resident Evil you remember from the Paul W.S. Anderson films. Cregger's take, starring Austin Abrams as a medical courier named Bryan, follows one protagonist through a single night of hell in Raccoon City. The trailer makes it clear that the movie is set in the modern day—a smartphone appears—so don't expect the 1998 timeline of the original games. Instead, Cregger has said he's adapting the structure of playing a Resident Evil game: the descent deeper into chaos, the resource scarcity, the dread of turning every corner.
What the trailer reveals about Cregger's vision
The trailer is a rapid-fire tour of Resident Evil iconography. Beyond the obvious zombie, the typewriter save point is a direct nod to the games' signature mechanic. The Heavy Field shells are a deep cut for fans who've scrutinized item descriptions. And the zombie baby—well, that's a new nightmare that feels like it could have been ripped straight from the Spencer Mansion's dark corners. The film also appears to feature a kooky character slowly losing his mind, a staple of the series' B-movie charm.
Cregger previously directed Barbarian, a horror film that thrived on tension and unpredictable twists. His Resident Evil promises a similar tone, but on a much larger scale. "It feels in line with my sensibility," he said in an interview. "It's just a much bigger scale than Weapons and certainly Barbarian." That scale is evident in the trailer's chaotic streets, explosions, and hordes of the infected.
Why this adaptation matters for the franchise
This is Sony's third attempt at a live-action Resident Evil since the Anderson series ended. The 2021 reboot, Welcome to Raccoon City, tried to adhere closely to the first two games' plots but flopped critically and commercially. Cregger's approach is different: he's not trying to adapt the lore beat-for-beat; he's trying to make you feel like you're playing a Resident Evil game. That's a smart pivot, especially as the industry has seen other game adaptations succeed by prioritizing atmosphere and gameplay structure over narrative fidelity—think of how Alan Wake or Alien: Isolation captured the essence of their source material without slavishly recreating every plot point.
The trailer also hints at a broader trend: game adaptations are finally learning that what works on screen isn't always the same as what works on the controller. By focusing on the experience of survival horror—limited resources, oppressive environments, and the constant threat of death—Cregger's Resident Evil could be the first film to truly understand why players keep coming back to the series. It's a lesson that other game franchises, like Ace Combat series, have also embraced in their adaptations, prioritizing the feel of flying over the complexity of the story.
The Easter eggs that fans will obsess over
The trailer is a goldmine for eagle-eyed fans. Here are some of the most notable references:
- Typewriter — The classic save point makes an appearance, likely as a narrative device or a quiet moment of respite.
- Heavy Field shotgun shells — A specific brand of ammunition from the games, confirming the attention to detail.
- Raccoon City — The name is spoken aloud, anchoring the film in the series' iconic setting.
- Zombie baby — A grotesque new creature that feels like it could be from the more surreal entries in the series.
- Modern technology — A smartphone confirms the timeline is not 1998, which changes the context of the outbreak.
These details suggest that Cregger and co-writer Shay Hatten (John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, Army of the Dead) have done their homework. The film is clearly designed for fans who know the difference between a Green Herb and a Red Herb, but it's also accessible enough for newcomers. That's a tightrope walk that few game adaptations manage successfully.
Potential pitfalls and skepticism
Not everyone is sold on this approach. The modern-day setting is a departure from the games' late-90s aesthetic, which is part of their charm. Some fans worry that the shift to a smartphone-era Raccoon City will lose the analog horror vibe that made the original games so distinctive. The trailer also shows a lot of action, which could overwhelm the survival horror elements that Cregger claims to prioritize. And while the Easter eggs are plentiful, there's a risk that the movie becomes a checklist of references rather than a compelling story in its own right.
Cregger's previous work, Barbarian, was a slow-burn horror that relied on a single location and a small cast. Scaling that up to a city-wide outbreak is a massive challenge. The trailer doesn't reveal whether the film can sustain its tension over a feature-length runtime, or if it will collapse into the same bloated action that plagued the Anderson films. For now, the trailer is a promising sign, but it's not a guarantee.
What comes next for the Resident Evil movie
Resident Evil opens in theaters and IMAX on September 18. It's the first of two major Capcom adaptations this year, with Kitao Sakurai's Street Fighter film due in 2026. If Cregger's movie succeeds, it could set a new template for how Capcom licenses its properties to Hollywood—one that prioritizes the player's experience over the Wikipedia plot summary. The trailer suggests we might finally get a Resident Evil movie that feels like a Resident Evil game, not just a zombie movie with the name slapped on. That's worth getting excited about, even if the zombie baby will haunt your nightmares.
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