Sony put $75 million into this film, and forecasters expect it to open around $40 million in about 3,500 North American theaters, with the optimistic end nearer $50 million. The film is a new Resident Evil, written and directed by Zach Cregger.
Follow the money and the franchise looks strange. The film series has earned more than $1.2 billion worldwide, yet its first entry, Paul W.S. Anderson’s 2002 picture with Milla Jovovich, opened to $17.7 million domestically and passed $100 million globally. Jovovich went on to lead five sequels. Then came 2021’s Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City with Kaya Scodelario, which missed commercial expectations. The catch is that the brand alone has not reliably sold tickets in years.
Why this one is different
Cregger is the draw. His last film, Weapons, won an Oscar, and Barbarian built his name in horror before it. Reviews are strong: the film sits at 96 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. The Hollywood Reporter’s Frank Scheck called it “a propulsive, simultaneously terrifying and hilarious thrill ride.” Cregger was more modest at the Los Angeles premiere. “I’ve seen the movie, and I like it,” he said.
Austin Abrams plays a medical courier carrying a crucial item through a viral outbreak in Raccoon City. Zach Cherry, Kali Reis and Paul Walter Hauser round out the cast.
Theaters need it. Practical Magic 2 recently ended the six-week run of Sony’s Spider-Man: Brand New Day at number one with a modest debut. That Spider-Man film had just climbed to the top of the all-time domestic chart, past The Force Awakens. A hit this weekend would be the first real jolt for the early fall box office. GKIDS opens Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom wide the same weekend.
