Our first trailer for Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil movie has echoes of Weapons and more, but does fall a little short on lickers

Director Zach Cregger (Weapons, Barbarian) has released the first trailer for his Resident Evil movie adaptation, scheduled for theatrical release on September 18, 2026. The film stars Austin Abrams as Bryan, a medical courier caught in a nightmarish survival situation during an unspecified catastrophic event in Raccoon City.

Unlike previous live-action Resident Evil films, Cregger’s adaptation prioritizes survival horror and atmosphere over action spectacle. The director has deliberately distanced himself from the franchise’s earlier cinematic outings, stating he largely ignored them to focus on capturing the pacing and horror vibe of the video games themselves. The original story is set on the periphery of the events depicted in Resident Evil 2, creating a parallel narrative to the game’s main plot.

The trailer—which premiered at CinemaCon—received a positive reception, though fan reactions have been mixed. While some praise the film’s apparent commitment to genuine horror, others have expressed disappointment that it lacks recognizable Resident Evil elements like the RPD police station, Umbrella Corporation, or iconic creatures such as lickers. The trailer features an imposing pale creature that some have compared to Dune’s Baron Harkonnen.

Cregger has emphasized his desire to honor what makes the games compelling while avoiding direct replication of existing game narratives, arguing that fans can already experience those stories in the original games. The film also stars Paul Walter Hauser, Zach Cherry, and Kali Reis, with a screenplay co-written by Cregger and Shay Hatten.

Sources

• Our first trailer for Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil movie has echoes of Weapons and more, but does fall a little short on lickers
• The Resident Evil Movie Doesn’t “Look Like RE,” But Neither Do Some Of The Games
• Resident Evil Movie’s Giant Creature Sure Looks Like He Came From Dune
• Resident Evil Movie Trailer Debuts, Highlighting A Terrifying New Vision
• ‘Where’s the RPD? Where’s Umbrella?’ — the Internet Reacts to the Resident Evil Movie Trailer
• Resident Evil Trailer Reveals First Look at Director Zach Cregger’s Video Game Movie Reboot
• Resident Evil Movie’s First Trailer is Live
• Zach Cregger’s ‘Resident Evil’ Movie Gets Its First Teaser Trailer
• Don’t do this to me Zach Cregger, don’t get me excited for a Resident Evil movie—I can’t get hurt again
• Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil follows a new protagonist on the periphery of Resident Evil 2
• New Resident Evil movie borrows one of Requiem’s storytelling tricks
• Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil trailer reveals first look at the Weapons director’s take on the video game franchise
• Zach Cregger is ignoring the previous Resident Evil films and focusing on survival horror
• ‘I Want to Celebrate Everything I Love About the Games’: Zach Cregger’s New Resident Evil Movie Looks Like a Blast
• ‘One fateful, horrifying night’: Here’s the first trailer for the Resident Evil movie