Resident Evil Movies Ranked: How Faithful Are They To The Games?

The movies and video games in the Resident Evil series haven’t always closely followed each other, but it’s interesting to look at how true the films are to the original survival horror games. Surprisingly, horror director George A. Romero was once going to direct the first Resident Evil movie, and it would have been a fairly accurate adaptation of the first game.

The 2002 film directed by Paul W.S. Anderson significantly changed the original story. This became a pattern for the Resident Evil movies, which borrowed characters and creatures from the games but mostly told their own, separate stories.

This helps explain why video game fans generally don’t like the movies. However, the films do have their own audience – people who enjoy them as fun, cheesy B-movies, even if they’ve never experienced the games.

7. Resident Evil: Extinction (2007)

Resident Evil: Extinction is probably the movie most different from the source games. Unlike previous films, it fully embraces a post-apocalyptic setting, feeling like a blend of the action in Mad Max 2 and the horror of Romero’s Day of the Dead.

The movie follows Alice (Milla Jovovich) as she joins a group of survivors searching for a legendary safe place, while being chased by the Umbrella Corporation. Although it doesn’t closely follow the original Resident Evil storyline, the film still includes elements from the game series.

Alice teams up with Claire Redfield (Ali Larter) and Carlos (Oded Fehr) as they face off against terrifying monsters, including the Tyrant, zombie dogs, and mutant crows. Like the games, a diary is key to understanding the story. Wesker (Jason Mara) shows up briefly, but his appearance doesn’t really add much.

6. Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2017)

Similar to Extinction, Resident Evil: The Final Chapter is primarily an action-packed adventure in the style of Mad Max. It concludes the storyline of the film series, explaining Alice’s origins and her relationship with The Red Queen.

The latest Milla Jovovich film includes several references to the original games. While the story changes his reasons and past, the movie confirms that James Marcus at Umbrella Corporation was the creator of the t-Virus. Plus, fans will recognize the powerful triple-barreled shotgun from Resident Evil 5.

Claire Redfield and Wesker (played by Shawn Roberts) are back, and a terrifying, mutated creature called Bloodshot—originally from the sixth game—has a major fight scene with Alice. The movie also includes a reference to the very beginning of the first Resident Evil game, with the characters being chased by zombie dogs as they head towards The Hive lab.

5. Resident Evil (2002)

Paul W.S. Anderson was interested in directing a Resident Evil movie, but George Romero was already working on it. Anderson then started developing his own zombie film. When Romero left the project, Anderson presented his screenplay for Resident Evil to the producers, and even though it differed greatly from the games, they approved it.

The first movie established Alice, a character created specifically for the film series. While making the movie, director Paul W.S. Anderson considered it a potential origin story for the video game, showing how the outbreak began. Although the film doesn’t include any characters from the games, it does feature iconic enemies like zombies, dogs, and the Licker.

The game and film share a secret Umbrella lab where experiments take place, and the train used to reach The Hive is actually from the original Resident Evil 2. The ending echoes the beginnings of both the Nemesis monster and the Raccoon City outbreak.

4. Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010)

Resident Evil: Afterlife starts with a flashy action scene reminiscent of The Matrix, even featuring psychic abilities. This dramatic opening feels very different from the scary, suspenseful atmosphere of the original games, but the movie quickly shifts to a more confined prison environment for the majority of its length.

This fourth installment brings back Claire Redfield, alongside her brother Chris (played by Wentworth Miller), sporting his look from Resident Evil 5. The final fight with Wesker and the appearance of the large Axeman monster are both very similar to what fans saw in the fifth game, and Claire and Alice team up to fight them.

Generally, Afterlife borrows heavily from the 2009 sequel, which was known for its fast-paced action and is a standout title in the Capcom series. However, when it comes to the story, Afterlife takes a completely different path.

3. Resident Evil: Retribution (2012)

Following directly after the events of Afterlife, Resident Evil: Retribution finds Alice held captive within a massive Umbrella testing facility. The film brings together popular characters from throughout the Resident Evil series, including Leon Kennedy (Johann Urb), Barry Burton (Kevin Durand), and Ada Wong (Li Bingbing).

Ada Wong shows up with her outfit and tools from the fourth game, but Leon Kennedy’s personality is quite different from how he acts in the game. The movie also includes the villainous version of Jill Valentine and a thrilling car chase with zombies shooting guns, both inspired by the fifth game. Plus, the dangerous parasites from Resident Evil 4, called Las Plagas, play a role in the story.

The game’s snowy landscapes and a snowmobile tipping over during a chase are reminiscent of a memorable scene from Code: Veronica. Furthermore, the core idea of Retribution – an underground lab with simulated testing areas – strongly echoes elements from the novel Underworld by S.D. Perry.

2. Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004)

Paul W.S. Anderson directed four out of the six Resident Evil films and was involved in writing and producing all of them. He intentionally deviated from the source material, explaining that he wanted to surprise audiences familiar with the games and offer a new take on the story.

The Resident Evil films came closest to matching the games with the second movie, Apocalypse. This sequel is loosely based on Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, taking several scenes and ideas from the game. It features Jill (played by Sienna Guillory) and Carlos, the main characters from Resident Evil 3, as well as the Nemesis creature.

The story unfolds in the isolated city of Raccoon City, showing the downfall of the S.T.A.R.S. team as a zombie outbreak overwhelms everything. The climax is particularly dramatic, with Raccoon City ultimately being destroyed by a nuclear bomb. While there’s a memorable scene of zombies emerging from graves, the game also includes many other changes and additions.

Instead of Jill, Alice is the central character, and Carlos’s teammate Nikolai is portrayed as a hero rather than a villain working for Umbrella. The film also introduces new characters, like LJ, played by Mike Epps. Plus, it focuses much more on action sequences than scary moments.

1. Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (2021)

Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City completely restarted the film series, reimagining the story from the beginning. Director Johannes Roberts, known for The Strangers: Prey at Night, combined elements from the first and second games, bringing together iconic characters like Chris, Claire, Leon, and Wesker, and famous locations like Spencer Mansion and the Raccoon City Police Department.

Welcome to Raccoon City really leans into the history of the Resident Evil series. It features important characters like the tragic Lisa Trevor, recreates iconic moments like the truck explosion from the second game, and even includes references to the Ashford Twins from Code: Veronica. Based on those elements, it seems to deliver exactly what fans wanted.

The show includes references to classic lines like “Itchy, tasty,” features the unsettling orphanage from the Resident Evil 2 remake, and culminates in a monster being destroyed by a rocket launcher. However, it deviates from the original story in several ways, most notably by portraying Wesker (Tom Hopper) as a more understanding villain and establishing a father-son dynamic between Chris (Robbie Amell) and Birkin (Neal McDonough).

Okay, so as a big Resident Evil fan, I was really hoping Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City would finally get it right. And honestly, it is the most faithful adaptation of the games we’ve seen so far, which is cool. But man, it’s still pretty rough around the edges. The special effects – especially the CGI and all the blood – just look…cheap. Plus, they tried to fit way too much story into a movie that wasn’t long enough. It felt really rushed.

2026-01-11 19:51