The Resident Evil franchise has been rebooted, relaunched, and reimagined more times than most horror properties ever get sequels. Zach Cregger hopes his version breaks the cycle — and even with his 18 September release date just two weeks away, he is already thinking about what comes next.
In an interview with The Playlist, the Barbarian and Weapons director confirmed he has “ideas” for a second Resident Evil film. “I can’t help thinking about other places this story could go,” Cregger said. “I’ve got ideas, but this movie hasn’t even come out yet. Let’s see what happens.”
That last line matters. Cregger is not green-lit on a sequel — he is speculating. But given how he has handled franchise expansion in the past, this comment carries more weight than a throwaway press-circuit answer.
Why This Reads Differently From the Barbarian Conversation
When Barbarian became a surprise horror hit in 2022, Cregger was direct: no sequel, full stop. He told interviewers he doubted he would ever return to that world, and he has kept that position. No Barbarian 2.
Weapons was different. After its 2025 release, Cregger quickly flagged that a spinoff featuring Aunt Gladys — played by Oscar-winner Amy Madigan — was in the works. He is a director who is precise about when a story is finished and when it is not. When he signals openness, he tends to follow through.
The Resident Evil comments read closer to the Weapons model. He describes ideas already “percolating” and thoughts about “what could happen going forward.” For a man who gives clear answers when he means them, that registers as genuine interest rather than deflection.
In cinemas: Resident Evil premieres at Fantastic Fest on 17 September 2026, then opens wide via Sony Pictures the following day.
What Cregger’s Resident Evil Is Actually About
Before sequel talk gets too far ahead, it helps to understand what the reboot is actually doing. Cregger’s Resident Evil tells an entirely original story within the games‘ world — no Leon Kennedy, no Chris Redfield, no familiar characters from previous films or Capcom’s franchise.
Austin Abrams plays Bryan, a medical courier tasked with delivering a live organ across Raccoon City on the worst possible night. As the T-Virus outbreak takes hold, Bryan has to fight through waves of mutated horrors to reach his destination. The Resident Evil games are having a strong year, with Requiem earlier in 2026 drawing considerable attention — Cregger’s film arrives as the franchise’s wider cultural profile is at a high point.
The games’ pacing — one protagonist moving from A to B through escalating danger — is the template. But Cregger set the story parallel to Resident Evil 2’s catastrophic night rather than retelling it, using a different character’s perspective to honour the horror without repeating what the games already do brilliantly.
For Abrams, the challenge was tracking Bryan’s physical state across a non-linear shoot. Every cut meant knowing exactly how tired, how hurt, and how blood-soaked Bryan should look at each stage — continuity work he admitted was “a little overwhelming”.
The Numbers the Franchise Needs
A sequel does not happen on directorial enthusiasm alone — it needs a box office argument. Early industry projections put Resident Evil’s opening weekend between $40 million and $50 million, which would make it the highest-grossing opening in the film franchise’s history.
For context, Welcome to Raccoon City — the 2021 reboot attempt — opened to around $26 million domestically before collapsing. Cregger’s version has significantly more studio backing, IMAX-ready presentation, and involvement from both Sony Pictures and PlayStation Productions.
“I want to talk about the ending of this movie so badly, because there is a big aspect of it worth discussing. This is a different situation.” — Zach Cregger, comparing Resident Evil to Barbarian when asked about sequel potential.
Recent promotional material suggests the story has room to continue. A Spanish-language Sony trailer showed what appears to be a Las Plagas-infected creature, a nod to Resident Evil 4. A poster featuring an X-ray of a Doberman Pinscher hinted at T-Virus infected dogs — a callback to the earliest games. Cregger is threading mythology through the margins.
The Verdict Arrives on 18 September
Whether an original Resident Evil story without the games’ familiar cast resonates with horror audiences and series fans alike is the question that lands in a fortnight. Cregger has acknowledged some fans were never going to embrace a non-direct adaptation, calling himself “naive” for expecting otherwise.
If the opening weekend delivers what the studio is hoping for, the ideas he is currently keeping vague may become very specific very quickly. His track record suggests he knows the difference between a story that deserves to continue and one that does not. Right now, he clearly believes Resident Evil belongs in the first category.
