Paul W.S. Anderson’s Resident Evil movies starring Milla Jovovich had officially closed back in 2016, and since then there have multiple attempts at restarting the franchise on film and television. The latest could involved Anora star Mikey Madison.
Barbarian director Zach Cregger is now working on a reboot which is said to be closer to the original games, and the film may have found someone to lead the franchise in the form of a recent Oscar winner.
Mikey Madison for Resident Evil?
According to World of Reel, Anora star and Best Actress Oscar winner Mikey Madison is currently in talks to be the female lead of the reboot. Besides her, the film has also tapped Euphoria star Austin Abrams to star as the male lead.
While no official plot has been confirmed, the movie is rumored to center on "a hapless courier (Abrams) tasked with delivering a package to a remote hospital. He finds himself caught in the middle of an outbreak and must fight through hordes of mutated creatures to survive."
For a movie that’s said to be closer to the story of the original games, it does seem like the plot is veering away from the story. After all, early Resident Evil games are all about what takes place in Raccoon City and Spencer Mansion.
Going back to Madison though, she may be an Oscar winner now, but she does have her brand rooted in horror/slashers. She played a part in Scream 5 which came out in 2022, and she was also famously one of the Manson girls in the climax of Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time… In Hollywood.
Being the lead of the Resident Evil franchise doesn’t seem too far off for Madison, but the B-movie reputation of the brand could kill her chances to work on more prestigious films moving forward.
Then again, Cregger ha been lauded for some great work in horror with Barbarian and his recent movie Companion, so maybe Resident Evil is ready for a more serious take on the big screen, and Madison could very much be the face of it.
Previous Attempts at an RE Reboot
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+ 2Though Anderson’s RE films did generate billions in the box office, they were known to be campy action films which occasionally featured characters from the games.
There was an attempt to reboot the franchise with 2021’s Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City, but it was met with terrible reviews (despite making a profit); and the next year Netflix tried an 8-episode series starring Lance Reddick which was also cancelled after one season.
click to enlarge + 2Not to mention there have also been several animated movies that have been coming out since the 2000s with the latest one, Resident Evil: Death Island, releasing in 2023.
With some top notch talent like Cregger and Madison attached, maybe RE is on its way to box office prestige, but it’s too early to tell. After all these year’s gestating though, there are sure to be some fans ready for a return of RE on the big screen.
For now, the Resident Evil reboot is expected to hit theaters on Sept. 18, 2026.
For more articles like this, take a look at our Resident Evil page.