“It all started with a gunshot… and then everything went to chaos.” Zach Cregger—the man behind Weapons and Barbarian—is unleashing a new nightmare with his Resident Evil remake, and the first teaser trailer has already shown this to be the most brutal survival horror yet. This isn’t just another video game adaptation. It tells the story of a man, Brian (Austin Abrams), trapped in a crumbling world where every step forward means worse monsters, less ammunition, and no safe escape. Like in the games, survival isn’t about strength—it’s about what you’re forced to sacrifice to keep going. A pistol. Then a shotgun. Then something far worse. And once you enter this world—there’s no guarantee you’ll get out.

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‘Resident Evil’ movie unleashes bloody first trailer: Everything to know about Zach Cregger’s ‘Weapons’ follow-up

The acclaimed horror writer-director says he hopes to honor the classic video game series.
Resident Evil
Resident Evil
Sony Pictures

Resident Evil, one of the most resilient franchises in video game history, has cinematic arm that seems just as unlikely to stay dead. Look no further than the latest film adaptation of the classic Capcom series, this one directed by one of the hottest directors in horror, Zach Cregger of Weapons and Barbarian.

The upcoming movie, called simply Resident Evil, just dropped its first teaser trailer, which you can find below, and keep reading to learn everything to know about the next iteration of the series.

The Teaser

Matching descriptions from the footage coming out of CinemaCon in Las Vegas, the teaser keeps the focus tight on Brian (Austin Abrams), the everyman hero of the story, as he tries to stay alive during, frankly, a pretty messed-up situation.

The Creative Team

Cregger was announced as director and co-writer (along with Shay Hatten) in early 2025, long before Weapons solidified him as one of the most exciting voices working on horror today — and long before Amy Madigan took home her Best Supporting Actress Oscar for playing Aunt Gladys.

The Cast

In addition to carrying over Abrams from Weapons, Cregger enlisted two funny, talented actors, Emmy winner Paul Walter Hauser and Severance‘s Zach Cherry. Also in the cast are True Detective: Night Country‘s Kali Reis and Johnno Wilson.

The Backstory

Resident Evil' movie unleashes bloody first trailer: Everything to know about Zach Cregger's 'Weapons' follow-up - IMDb

Sony invited some journalists (including IGN) to the Prague set of Resident Evil, and while they were there, Cregger explained both his fandom of the video game series and how he’s hoping to bring the DNA of classic titles to his film.

“What’s important to me, that I’m honoring from the games, is the narrative structure and following one character from point A to point B, and the concern with resource management, ammunition conservation,” Cregger said. “We start with a pistol, we graduate to a shotgun, we graduate to an MP5, and things are just getting progressively more intense, and we’re encountering weirder and weirder monsters.”

The Release Date

Resident Evil opens in theaters on Sept. 18.