That yes, what did not dare to change was the name of the organization behind the T virus and that will cause the zombie apocalypse throughout the planet. Obviously, we are talking about the Umbrella Corporation, also known by the same name in video games.
Hand in hand with the Umbrella Corporation we have Albert Wesker, a villain who also appeared in video games and that in the movies we will begin to see it from Resident Evil 3 Extinction. From that moment on, he will opt for an indefinite role that at times will be able to get close to Alice and at others fight against her to life or death.
Now, where are the Claire Redfields, Chris Redfields, Jill Valentines, Leon Kennedys, and Barry Burtons of video games? Well, while the saga starring Alice chooses to introduce them separately and sporadically in different installments, the last of the video game adaptations, Resident Evil Welcome to Raccoon City, prefers to be faithful to the original Capcom work by putting them on screen from the beginning (except Burton).
It is in this film reboot already far from the hands of the couple (also in reality) Paul WS Anderson and Milla Jovovich that we can expect a story landing until the lore seen in video games. Which could always be good news.
What story do they tell us?
It is important to remember, for the peace of mind of fans of the Capcom video game saga, that what movies directed, produced or written by Paul WS Anderson tell is not canonso when you see them, do not think that you are witnessing events that could be dealt with in video games in the future or that have been visited over the last 26 years.
It is true that some moments of the films are inspired by stories that are distantly contemplated in some video game and, proof of this, is that they take the opportunity to introduce Leon S. Kennedy, Claire Redfield, Chris Redfield, Jill Valentine, Ada Wong and Barry Burton. For their part, nobody still believes that in something called resident Evil a main character like Alice ends up gaining supernatural powers.
Only in the case of Resident Evil Welcome to Raccoon City the story does drink directly from the events of the video games, but having only one installment, it remains to be seen the path it will take plotly, which must include whether Capcom considers it canon or not.
There is only one link between all films and video games: that the Umbrella Corporation developed the T virus from its facilities in Raccoon City and from there it spread to the rest of the world, causing a group of heroes to fight against it to get a definitive antidote.
All movies in the franchise
The point is that we have dared to dive into this universe of movies and then we will tell you about all those that have been released in theaters and that are already part of that immense universe of a saga that, at least as far as video games are concerned, remains as alive as ever. Despite being full of dead (easy joke).
These are all the movies of resident Evilsorted by year of theatrical release:
Resident Evil (2002)
The first of all begins by inventing characters. Alice (Milla Jovovich) works as a member of private security of the famous Umbrella Corporation that, as you know, is responsible for the creation of the T virus, which is the one that causes chaos and allows the dead to become zombies. Well, in this film we will learn how the apocalypse that the world is experiencing was caused and the security flaws that allowed the infectious agent to begin to spread: Raccon City, the Red Queen, the Hive. Of course, the search for an antivirus will focus a good part of the plot. You can watch it right now on HBO Max.
Resident Evil 2: Apocalypse (2004)
With the virus already rampant in Raccoon City, Alice will have to escape the city before a nuclear missile sent by the government to contain the crisis explodes. By the way, our protagonist will cross paths with an old acquaintance from video gamesas is Nemesis, who will make an appearance as if it were Resident Evil 3 (to the video game we mean, of course). In addition, Alice will cross paths with other old acquaintances such as Jill Valentine and Carlos Olivera, in addition to visiting some scenarios and starring in certain scenes obtained directly from the video games of the time.
Resident Evil 3: Extinction (2007)
In this film we will meet Claire Redfield and Albert Wesker although the plot is already beginning to unravel and is not limited to what happened in Raccoon City since the T-virus is reaching all corners of the planet and things are getting complicated to contain it. Now, Alice has to fight against that threat and, obviously, against the Umbrella Corporation, who wants to hunt her down in order to clone her and get new humans with the same powers while looking for a way to find a way to Alaska, the only place where it seems that things continue as usual. At least without zombies. You can see it on HBO Max.
Resident Evil 4: Afterlife (2010)
The movie recounts the events that occurred a year after Resident Evil 3: Extinction and puts Alice in the role of taking the initiative, as she will create a small group to try to storm the very facilities of the Umbrella Corporation to eliminate Albert Wesker. Along the way we will meet the legendary Chris Redfield of video games.
Resident Evil: Revenge (2012)
The old artificial intelligence (the Red Queen) who was involved in the spread of the T-Virus within the first movie of resident Evil back on stage, what will lead Alice to have to ally with some unexpected characters in his quest to put an end to the apocalypse that is plaguing the planet. In this installment, new video game characters will join, such as Leon S. Kennedy, Ada Wong or Barry Burton.
Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2017)
It’s about the film that brings full circle to the part of the franchise starring Milla Jovovich (and directed mostly by her husband Paul WS Anderson) and that tells us that in the mystery of the creation and subsequent spread of the T virus, things happened that we don’t know about. So it’s up to Alice to put an end to it by returning to Raccoon City to put an end to all traces of the Umbrella Corporation, Albert Wesker, the Red Queen and the famous Hive. What do you think will happen? You can watch it on HBO Max and Netflix.
Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (2021)
As the movies starring Milla Jovovich are a story free within the universe of resident EvilNo We can place this delivery as a continuation or a chapter that we have to see between two previous films. On the contrary, it is a new reboot for the franchise that wants to reproduce with greater fidelity what we already enjoy in video games. In this case, Resident Evil Welcome to Raccoon City focuses on many of the events seen in the first two titles of the Capcom saga, showing what the first moments of that T-virus expansion were like.
It is so close to video games that characters directly from the Japanese franchise appear on the screen: Claire and Chris Redfield, Jill Valentine, Ada Wong, Albert Wesker or Leon Kennedy among others.
In what order to watch the Resident Evil movies?
Unlike other endless sagas like Marvel’s UCM, or Fast&Furious that has some comings and goings due to its chronology, in the case of the films of resident Evil we will not have losses because the order of viewing is the same as the chronological order of arrival in theaters. But just in case you still have doubts, here’s the thing:
- Resident Evil (2002)
- Resident Evil 2: Apocalypse (2004)
- Resident Evil 3: Extinction (2007)
- Resident Evil 4: Afterlife (2010)
- Resident Evil: Revenge (2012)
- Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2017)
- Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (2021)
