Barbarian Director Helms Resident Evil Revival

Zach Cregger, acclaimed director of the horror film Barbarian and a member of the comedy troupe The Whitest Kids You Know, is helming a Resident Evil reboot.

The Hollywood Reporter reports a fierce bidding war is underway for distribution rights to Cregger's adaptation of Capcom's iconic survival horror franchise. Cregger is set to write and direct. Four studios, including Netflix and Warner Bros., are reportedly vying for the project.

Cregger's 2022 horror hit, Barbarian, centered on a woman's terrifying discovery at a rented house. He has already completed his next film, Weapons, which reportedly received highly positive audience test screenings.

[Read our Barbarian review here.](link to review - This needs to be a real link if you want to include this)

This marks the second Resident Evil film reboot. Paul W.S. Anderson directed a six-film series starring Milla Jovovich, which, while deviating from the games, achieved a worldwide gross of $1.2 billion. A 2021 reboot, Welcome to Raccoon City, directed by Johannes Roberts, aimed for greater game fidelity but fell short of the games' quality.

Constantin Film, in collaboration with PlayStation Productions, will produce Cregger's reboot. Established in 2019, Sony's PlayStation Productions adapts video games into film and television, with past projects including the Uncharted film starring Tom Holland, Gran Turismo, the The Last of Us TV series, and Twisted Metal.

Future PlayStation Productions projects include adaptations of Until Dawn, Days Gone, Ghost of Tsushima, Gravity Rush, Helldivers, Horizon Zero Dawn, and an Uncharted sequel. A God of War TV series and a recently announced Ghost of Tsushima anime series are also in development.