Zach Cregger to Tackle ‘Resident Evil’ Reboot, Igniting Bidding War (Exclusive)
Studios are fighting for a package that will see the 'Barbarian' filmmaker write and direct a new movie based on the horror video game.
The fight forZach Cregger’s new movie is on.
In what seems to have become the first major auction of the year, an intense bidding war is underway for a reboot ofResident Evil, the horror action movie franchise based on the popular video games. Cregger is attached to write and direct.
Four studios are elbowing for the win, among them Warner Bros. and Netflix, according to sources.
Constantin Film, which has held the screen rights to the title since the late 1990s and has been behind the previous movies, will produce the reboot along with PlayStation Productions. Shay Hatten, who worked onJohn Wick: Chapter 4 and Zack Snyder’sArmy of the Dead, is co-writing.
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The movies, six starring Milla Jovovich plus one origin feature made during the pandemic, have been moneymakers. But Cregger is the reason studios are willing to shell out major money.
Cregger was an actor and comedian who reinvented himself as a cutting-edge filmmaker withBarbarian, the 2022 cult hit that he wrote and directed. It also established him as a new voice in horror, and when he went out with his follow-up horror project, a bidding war erupted. That upcoming film, titledWeapons, was won by Warners’ New Line division and saw himbecome a final cut director. The horror movie has Josh Brolin and Julia Garner in its ensemble cast.
The word onWeapons is that it’s very strong and has been testing quite high, according to sources. And Warners, which has not yet dated the movie, is likely doing everything it can to keep Cregger in its talent fold. (The filmmaker is also gearing up to release his first major film as a producer, the horror thrillerCompanion, which is receiving glowing reviews ahead of a Jan. 31 opening.)
And the combination of Cregger paired with an established intellectual property is also likely to be something too tempting to pass up, no matter the cost.
TheResident Evil movies, based on the Capcom video games, were a mix of horror, sci-fi and action genres and followed the adventures of a heroine who fights zombies and the Umbrella Corporation, the bio warfare company that let loose the monsters. The movies have grossed over $1.2 billion worldwide.
Cregger’s take is described by sources as a revamp that will take the title to its horror roots and be more faithful to the initial games, which date back to 1996.
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