Zach Cregger's Resident Evil earns tense early review
Resident Evil is frightening on film again.
GameSpot's review, published on 16 September 2026, describes Zach Cregger's new take as exciting, tense and disgusting. That is a strong start for a series with a mixed record in cinemas. The review points to breathless terror close to playing the games.
The film is directed by Zach Cregger. He earned critical acclaim for horror films including Barbarian, according to GameSpot.
The story stays small and cruel. Metacritic describes it as Cregger's most straightforward horror film to date, centred on Bryan trying to deliver his package and survive the night. No secret army. No sprawling mythology. Just one courier, one route, one very bad shift.
Cregger has talked openly about that choice. He said the film would be true to the experience of the video games, and that it probably lives in the world of Resident Evil 2, according to GameSpot. He later explained why he wanted a film inspired by the games but not necessarily based on them, according to GameSpot.
For newcomers, that distinction matters. Inspired means the mood, puzzles, scarce supplies and things in the dark. Not necessarily the same characters doing the same scenes. It is a way to keep the feeling of survival horror, where a player with little ammunition must think and run, without copying a playthrough beat for beat.
Early reception is now being logged. Metacritic updated its 'Every Movie Based on a Videogame, Ranked' list in September 2026 to add Resident Evil. The list covers live-action feature films adapted from videogames, from 1993's Super Mario Bros. to 2026's Resident Evil, ordered from worst to best by Metascore, its combined review score, according to Metacritic.
Metacritic also maintains a dedicated reviews page for the 2026 film. Its critic-reviews page lists a score of 80 attributed to Total Film, according to Metacritic.
What makes this stand out is the promise. A horror director with form. A story built around dread rather than lore. And first notices that stress tension and disgust in equal measure.
