Zach Cregger's Resident Evil movie was a massive hit and – for our money at least – the best video game movie ever made. But one aspect of making and releasing Resident Evil still irks writer-director Cregger: the conversation around the movie's relationship to the Resident Evil games.
Appearing on The Town podcast, Cregger was asked about his foray into IP filmmaking, and whether he'd make a movie based on another property again ("I mean, never say never"). But it seems like the big hurdle to Cregger wading back into IP waters is his frustration over the fact that "all the conversation [around Resident Evil] just felt like it was about not the movie".
"I was frustrated at the conversation around Resident Evil and how much of the conversation really didn't have anything to do with the movie," Cregger told host Matt Belloni. "It had everything to do with whether the movie was living up to the different standards that different fans of the games had, whether it was using the characters or not, or what did I get wrong in the lore, or why is it? It was just a lot about why isn't this like the source material or why is it good that it's not like the… All the conversation just felt like it was about not the movie."
Despite these frustrations, Cregger acknowledges that he's "proud" of Resident Evil, as it's exactly the movie he set out to make. "I really love the movie," Cregger said, before admitting, "I should have known better going into it. I should have understood that that was going to be the case, but for some reason I was a little shocked."
Fan expectations are par for the course when it comes to IP adaptations, but the discourse around the Resident Evil movie was particularly heated, perhaps because fans have had to endure two decades of Resident Evil movies in name only. The difference with Cregger is that he knows the Resident Evil games inside out, and delivered a movie that adapted the feel of the games rather than specific characters and elements of the lore. Even legendary game designer Hideo Kojima noted that watching Cregger's Resident Evil movie "reminded me how I felt when I played the first [game]" – high praise indeed.
While it seems unlikely that Cregger would make a second Resident Evil movie given his experience making the first (and the sad fate of Bryan in the Resident Evil movie ending), Cregger has said on several occasions that he does have ideas for future Resident Evil movies. Up next for Cregger, however, is original sci-fi The Flood, which recently added Jennifer Lawrence to the cast.
Resident Evil is out now. For more, check out our Resident Evil movie review and our ranking of the best Resident Evil games.
