Netflix announces live-action Resident Evil series

Netflix has announced it's producing a live-action Resident Evil TV show set within the universe of the long-running horror video game series. Like so many Netflix reveals, this announcement came via the official Netflix Twitter account, accompanied by a photograph of the manuscript’s front page and a short synopsis.

There’s no trailer or release date yet but we’ll report new details on the series as they surface.

“When the Wesker kids move to New Raccoon City, the secrets they uncover might just be the end of everything. Resident Evil, a new live-action series based on Capcom’s legendary survival horror franchise is coming to Netflix.”

The image also reveals the first episode’s title “Welcome to New Raccoon City” and the first episode’s writer, Andrew Dabb (Supernatural), and director, Bronwen Hughes (The Walking Dead).

Fans of the series will recognise the Wesker family name. Albert Wesker has long been the Resident Evil games’ big bad. Wesker, a renowned virologist, is one of the progenitors behind the t-Virus Project (the origin of zombie outbreak).

According to another synopsis, the series will follow the Wesker siblings across two timelines: the first as fourteen-year-old teens arriving in New Raccoon City. The second timeline takes us fifteen years into the future, where a 30-year old Jade Wesker survives in a world overrun by the t-Virus.

It’s a fresh take on the Resident Evil lore. The two Wesker children have never appeared in the game series, and the synopsis above doesn’t quite fit with the game’s timeline of events.

Netflix had outrageous success with its Witcher series and its animated adaptation of Castlevania was well-received amongst fans, so it’s no surprise the streaming giant is mining more beloved game franchises for the live-action treatment.

Still, Netflix Originals are hit-and-miss, and the company has proven it won’t hesitate to drop a series if it doesn’t meet viewership expectations. There’s no room for a cult hit on Netflix, so a lot of Originals (including Witcher, in our opinion) end up chasing much broader appeal.

We can’t help but wonder what an original Resident Evil series would look like in the hands of Shudder, the niche horror streaming service with a track record for taking bigger swings with its original content.