Resident Evil: Welcome To Raccoon City First Look: The Reboot Actually Looks Like The Video Games

Whatever you think of the previous "Resident Evil" movie franchise, you have to admit the films bore very little resemblance to the games that inspired them. Now, here comes "Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City," a reboot film that asks, "Wouldn't it be cool if we actually tried to make this look like the games?" Some first look images from the upcoming movie have arrived, and they certainly hammer home their connection to the games, right down to the clothing characters are wearing. 

The "Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City" images come from IGN, which also has an interview with the film's director, Johannes Roberts. 

"This movie really had nothing to do with the previous franchise," Roberts said. "This was all about returning to the games and creating a movie that was much more a horror movie than the sort of sci-fi action of the previous films." The filmmaker added that he was "hugely influenced by movies like 'The Exorcist' (and 'Exorcist 3'!), 'Don't Look Now,' and 'The Shining,'" as well as "Assault on Precinct 13." Saying your new horror movie is influenced by "Exorcist 3" is a sure-fire way to get my attention. We need more "Exorcist 3" respect in this world. 

In the image above, we see Avan Jogia as Leon S. Kennedy and Kaya Scodelario as Claire Redfield.

Here we see Tom Hopper as Albert Wesker, Nathan Dales as Brad Vickers, Hannah John-Kamen as Jill Valentine, and Robbie Amell as Chris Redfield. "I wanted to go back to the horror of it all. I wanted scares and atmosphere rather than full-on action," Roberts said, adding: 

"I think fans of the game felt the same. They wanted to see the iconic characters and locations and feel that the movie was more in line with the Resident Evil game world so that's really why we chose to go in that direction. We worked hand in hand with Capcom on this movie to the point that we actually got blueprints from them on the designs of the Spencer Mansion and Raccoon police station in order to recreate them as perfectly as we could. We even have the exact artwork up on the mansion walls. Capcom saw it for the first time the other day and was so happy and excited."

This all sounds pretty promising. I enjoyed some of the films in the previous "Resident Evil" movie franchise, but they are primarily action movies instead of horror. Saying this new movie leans more into horror elements is a sure-fire way to set this film apart from what came before.

Here's the final and best image, featuring Lisa Trevor as played by Marina Mazepa. This image alone is more horrific than anything in the entire previous "Resident Evil" movie series. "Lisa Trevor is actually quite a pivotal role in the movie," Roberts said, adding: 

"I was always fascinated by her when playing the remake of the first game. I found her character both disturbing and at the same time strangely haunting. When we were discussing how to bring this story to life it was one of the elements that I really wanted to feature strongly as she has never been in any of the filmed versions of Resident Evil. I wanted her to be a three-dimensional character, not just some creepy specter. We cast Marina Mazepa, who had just done Malignant for James Wan and really worked hard in bringing this character to life in a way I think the fans are going to love so much. She's terrifying but also tragic. In the movie, we really connect her to Claire Redfield's story, starting with the orphanage where Claire grew up."

"Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City" opens in theaters on November 24, 2021.