The Resident Evil franchise has been going strong for more than twenty years. Its popularity spawned a movie series starring Milla Jovovich. With the films having concluded with Resident Evil: The Final Chapter, Netflix is gearing up for their own original program based on the games.
Details are currently scarce, with the only lead being a leak revealing a new setting. Whatever it ends up doing, here are five things from the movies we hope it borrows, and five things we hope it leaves in the past. The majority of fans decry the movies, but they still have some valuable parts.
Want: Monsters From The Games
The movies always did a solid job with the creature designs. Zombies in the premier entry looked great, and Resident Evil: Apocalypse brought Nemesis, one of gaming’s most iconic monsters, to life in a convincing manner. Here’s hoping the upcoming show keeps up this trend by bringing more of fans’ favorite creatures to life. Imagine a live-action Mr. X from Resident Evil 2 chasing the protagonists in his trench coat and fedora.
Don’t Want: Poor Usage Of Characters From The Games
Resident Evil: Apocalypse introduced Jill Valentine, played by Sienna Guillory, with a fairly accurate portrayal to the character based on Resident Evil: Nemesis. Most of the characters from the games following her, however, resembled their source usually in name only. Claire Redfield could have been any other character and nobody would have felt the slightest inkling of the playable protagonist from Resident Evil 2.
Resident Evil: Retribution is the biggest offender, featuring Leon Kennedy, Barry Burton, and Ada Wong seemingly out of the blue. What is the point of giving them the name if their story bears nothing of their gaming counterpart. If the show uses characters from the game, let it actually mean something and excite fans as they see their beloved heroes come to life.
Want: Raccoon City
The city where the T-virus first came into the world served as the setting for Resident Evil: Apocalypse. While current rumors have the show set in the present day in a new, fictional city in Maryland, the creators have to include Raccoon City in some respect.
If only for flashbacks, seeing the city in a live action way would be a real treat. They could go a step further and include iconic locations like the police station, only this time more heavily resembling the game.
Don’t Want: Non Canon Story
The films started out straying far from the games and got progressively more independent from them with time. By the third film, the world had ended. It made for some nice B movie fare, but some were disappointed with how little it related to its source material. If the show wants to go above and beyond, they need to make it canon to the rich timeline from the games.
If they are not directly retelling any of the original classics, the new narrative should enrich one’s current understanding of the world, its various characters, and the various evil corporations.
Want: Underground Lab
It is not Resident Evil without an underground lab. More specifically, it needs one where the experiments drastically failed, causing everyone inside to transmogrify into unseemly beasts. The first film took place entirely in the lab as a solid way to keep the budget down.
Nearly every game in the series has a lab in some way, with Resident Evil 2 containing perhaps the most iconic one. They could either copy a design from the game or create a new design.
Don’t Want: More Action Than Horror
Even the first movie feels more action-oriented than horror. Some parts definitely creeped audiences out, but it was more fast paced than the average zombie flick. The sequels only went further into the action direction, much like the games did after Resident Evil 4.
While action movies are all well and good, fans want Resident Evil to haunt their dreams at night, and the show should aim for this vibe. The original classics on the PlayStation One still have the ability to make players break out in sweats despite the primitive graphics.
Want: Longevity
Whatever one says about the film series, it is impossible to deny its longevity. Six entries came out from 2002 to 2016, all of which starred Milla Jovovich. Assuming the show is worth people’s time, here is hoping for a similarly long lasting series. Netflix has a reputation for cancelling shows after two seasons, so this may difficult. On the other hand, fans have banded together to make even more unlikely things happen in the past.
Don’t Want: Characters From The Movies
This probably is not something fans have to worry about, but it bears repeating. While the films have their audience, the show would alienate a large portion of its potential viewers if it included characters from the movies. Even if they weren’t in the same timeline and were new versions of the same role, some would see it as a bad sign.
Besides, with a new show comes opportunities to make new characters, and what writer doesn’t love making a person from scratch?
Want: Blood And Gore
Resident Evil came out before the age of the neutered PG-13 action flick, and subsequent sequels kept the R-rating. Netflix is no stranger to mature content, and its Witcher adaptation features plenty of gore, so this does not seem like a problem. Fans want to see some gnarled undead walking around with half eaten faces getting blown away in a spectacular fashion. Tragic human deaths should be similarly graphic.
Don’t Want: Bad CGI
Paul W.S. Anderson’s films always had smaller budgets. While the filmmaker really knows how to stretch a dollar, some of the digital effects suffered. Like most of the best horror films, the series needs to prioritize practical effects over CGI, even the blood should be real and not the digital stuff most films prefer. Maybe a licker isn’t possible to portray without computers, but most of the other monsters seem possible to create with prosthetics, makeup, and other forms of craftsmanship. Practical effects give a sense of weight to a world, making it more believable.
Next: 10 Resident Evil Movie Memes Too Funny For Words
