Zach Cregger’s reboot of the ’90s zombie video game franchise Resident Evil has become the highest-grossing debut in the series’ history, raking in $60 million in North America and $48.3 million internationally for a global opening of $108.3 million, according to Variety. The film surpassed expectations, which had been set at $40 million to $50 million domestically.

A Fresh Take on an Iconic Franchise

This is Sony’s second major reboot of Resident Evil and the eighth installment overall. The previous reboot in 2021, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City, failed both critically and commercially, earning $42 million worldwide against a $25 million budget, per Variety. The 2026 reboot, however, was directed by Zach Cregger, who has been on a rapid rise in the horror genre. His 2022 film Barbarian and 2023’s Weapons both performed well, with Weapons grossing $270 million globally on a $38 million budget and winning an Oscar for star Amy Madigan.

According to Diario de Sevilla, Resident Evil is the third cinematic reboot of the franchise, following five earlier films between 2002 and 2017, all starring Milla Jovovich and directed by Paul W. S. Anderson (except two). Previous adaptations were described as financially successful but lacking in critical acclaim. The 2021 attempt failed to generate interest or revenue, and a planned Netflix series was canceled.

Stunts and Splatter: The Making of the Horror Sequences

The film’s action sequences, as described by Filmstarts, include a particularly dangerous stunt involving the protagonist, Bryan (played by Austin Abrams), who is chased through a snowy cityscape by zombies. In a scene shown in the trailer, zombies leap from rooftops and crash onto the ground in violent, graphic fashion. According to Cregger, he wanted to minimize CGI and rely on physical stunts, but the sequence nearly ended in disaster.

“We had to design a scene where he simply runs while bodies fall around him and explode,” Cregger told SlashFilm. The stunts were performed live, and the risk was high enough that the director admitted the scene could have ended in tragedy if something had gone wrong.

A Future in Horror and Sci-Fi

According to 20Minutos, Cregger is already looking ahead to his next projects. He has announced a prequel to Weapons focusing on Amy Madigan’s character, Gladys, as well as an original film titled The Flood, which is being described as a sci-fi horror hybrid combining elements of 2001: A Space Odyssey and Alien. The film, set to be released in 2028 and distributed by Warner Bros., follows a distant space station crew that discovers an alien object capable of distorting time and reality.

“I love this story. That movie is about something important to me,” Cregger said in an interview with 20Minutos. With Resident Evil already hailed as one of the best film adaptations of a video game, Cregger is ready to continue shaping the future of the horror genre with a unique blend of action, humor, and practical effects.