Resident Evil Film Director Says He’s “Not Trying to Adapt a Video Game” to Explain Changes

As we get closer to the September 18th theatrical release date for Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil film reboot , the director has now acknowledged that the movie might not stick to the established canon of the game franchise thanks to the inclusion of things like smartphones and the snowy weather. In an interview with IGN , he said, “I took liberties” when it came to the movie’s setting. “It’s not 1998. It takes place in modern times. I know that, during the events of Resident Evil 2 , it’s not snowing, and yet, in this movie, I thought it would be better for the story and for the visual, you know, whatever I’m doing, if it was snowy. It’s going to be a better movie for it.” Cregger went on to note that his movie’s take on the Resident Evil franchise isn’t supposed to be an adaptation of the games. This means that it also doesn’t include the iconic characters. Rather, he is more focused on telling a new story using the established world and lore of the games. “I am not trying to adapt a video game. I’m not using the characters from the games. I’m not telling a story that the games tell because I’m not going to be able to do it better than the games. The games are so well executed, and to me, Leon and Claire and these characters, they exist so perfectly in the games that anyone I cast and any difference that I do with them would be, probably, to the detriment of what I was trying to do.” As for what we might see make it into Cregger’s movie from the games, he said that the story will still involve aspects like the T-Virus, the Umbrella Corporation, and the setting of Raccoon City. The movie’s structure is also seemingly going to be similar to the games, with the characters “moving on foot from point A to point B, moving from set piece to set piece, location to location,” since that allows the story to establish the fact that “every location has its own unique threat.” “You have to keep in mind resource management and your health. You’re wounded, and you feel like you never have enough ammunition, and the world is always too big for you, and yet somehow, you’ve got to make it through, right? That’s what I’m trying to do.” By doing this, Cregger believes that his take on the franchise can sit comfortably alongside the games. “If this movie was a Resident Evil game, call it Resident Evil 10 , it wouldn’t feel weird. You know what I mean? That’s what I’m trying to build.” He also reiterated the fact that he understands fans of the series being upset about the movie not directly adapting the stories from the games. “I get the instinct to dig in,” he said. “I’ll be honest: I’ve never seen a Resident Evil movie because they don’t look, to me, like what I love so much about the games that I play. I was just like, ‘Not my Resident Evil .’ So, I understand that attitude. I’m making this because I want a movie to exist that feels like the experience of playing the game, and so, I was able to do that. That’s what I’m doing.” In the meantime, take a look at the most recent trailer for the film , which was released just last week.