IGN has shared the first exclusive images for Screen Gems’ upcoming live-action Resident Evil film, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City.
One of the images gives Resident Evil fans an early peek at what two of the franchise’s most popular characters, Leon S. Kennedy (Avan Jogia) and Claire Redfield (Kaya Scodelario), will look like in the new adaptation directed by Johannes Roberts (47 Meters Down).
Another image shows off the S.T.A.R.S team, which includes fan-favorite members such as Jill Valentine (Hannah John-Kamen) and Chris Redfield (Robbie Amell). There’s also a shot of Lisa Trevor—a mutated villain that should be familiar to those who played the Resident Evil reboot.
The most apparent thing about these photos is how the actors don’t look anything like their iconic counterparts. Leon and Jill, in particular, appear to be completely different characters despite the efforts made by the costume and makeup departments.
Roberts defended his acting choices in a new interview with IGN, explaining that he wasn’t simply looking for “cosplay characters who have the exact hair and costume of the characters.”
“It was hugely important with the whole casting process to find people who embodied the spirit and energy of the characters I wanted to portray,” Roberts said. “I think often in game adaptations one of the big flaws can be just casting someone to look visually like the characters – giving them the identical haircut and clothes but not really trying to give the audience the thing that a movie does better than a game – which is to create a three dimensional character that you can really connect with and believe in.”
Screen Gems insists that Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City isn’t a reboot or remake, but an origin story of Capcom’s original survival horror classics. The film will be released on November 24, 2021.
The upcoming movie Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City tells the origin story of the Capcom games. Written and directed by Johannes Roberts (47 Meters Down, The Strangers: Prey at Night), this film is based on the first two Resident Evil games and chronicles how Raccoon City went from being a city of industry to a dying Midwestern town that’s now ground zero for the t-Virus outbreak.