Zach Cregger's 'Resident Evil' reboot just obliterated 24 years of franchise box office history
The director of 'Barbarian' and 'Weapons' turns Raccoon City into a horror-comedy goldmine, and audiences rewarded him with the biggest opening the franchise has ever seen.
In brief
Zach Cregger's 'Resident Evil' reboot just obliterated 24 years of franchise box office history
Nobody told Zach Cregger he wasn't supposed to make a great 'Resident Evil' movie. So he went ahead and made one anyway.
Deadline reported Saturday that Cregger's R-rated Sony reboot opened to a projected $53 million to $60 million domestic debut, by far the largest opening weekend in the horror franchise's 24-year cinematic run. Variety confirmed the film pulled in $26.3 million on Friday alone, including $8.8 million from Thursday preview screenings, with Sony projecting a three-day domestic total between $53 million and $55 million, with some estimates running as high as $60 million. That is well above what anyone was planning for. The opening is well above the studio's initial forecast of $40 million, per The Hollywood Reporter.
For context on just how badly this thing broke the curve: the previous highest-grossing installment, 2010's 'Resident Evil: Afterlife,' made $26 million at the box office over its entire opening weekend. Cregger's film matched that number in a single day. In addition to earning more than double the debuts of every previous installment, the 2026 'Resident Evil' has already outgrossed the all-time worldwide gross of the franchise's previous reboot, 2021's 'Welcome to Raccoon City,' at the domestic box office alone, per Screen Rant's breakdown of Sony's numbers.
The movie opened in 3,684 theaters and cost $75 million to produce. Audiences gave it a B+ CinemaScore, the highest grade any 'Resident Evil' film has received. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film sits at 96% certified fresh, the series' best critical score. The previous best audience score belonged to the original 2002 film at 67%; this reboot's audience score is currently at 91%, according to Deadline.
A director with a hot hand and a bold choice
The film was directed by Zach Cregger, who last frightened audiences with 2025's 'Weapons' and 2022's 'Barbarian.' 'Weapons' opened to $43 million and ended its box office run with $270 million globally. This one is already on pace to top that. Cregger's hot streak continues, as 'Resident Evil' is set for his biggest opening ever, besting the impressive $43.5 million debut weekend for 'Weapons.'
In a bold move, Cregger made it clear that his movie would not adapt specific characters or storylines from the games and would instead try to evoke the feeling of playing them. That creative decision elated some while completely alienating others. With the review embargo lifted, it seems Cregger's gamble paid off.
Austin Abrams takes the lead as a medical courier who must contend with a zombie outbreak while making a delivery to Raccoon City General Hospital, co-written by Cregger and John Wick screenwriter Shay Hatten. The ensemble also includes Zach Cherry, Kali Reis and Paul Walter Hauser. Abrams already worked with Cregger on 'Weapons,' and critics are treating this as a genuine star-making turn. Variety's Owen Gleiberman describes Abrams as "a medical courier fending off viral beasties in a throwaway horror film that surges into symphonic loopiness," which, given Gleiberman's historical contempt for this franchise, reads almost as ecstasy.
The reviews go well beyond grudging. William Bibbiani of The Wrap calls it "an explosive horror experience which, unlike every other Resident Evil adaptation, captures the strange dichotomy of this popular video game series. It starts out terrifying, gradually becomes ridiculous, and totally gets away with that tonal shift." Bloody Disgusting noted the score makes it not only the best-reviewed adaptation of a horror video game, but the best-reviewed video game movie based on any genre.
Who is actually buying tickets?
The audience math tells its own story. Walk-up business hit 54% for 'Resident Evil,' meaning more than half the audience purchased tickets the same day. Forty-six percent came because it's part of a franchise they love, while 37% came specifically for Cregger, which Deadline calls "another case of a movie director becoming the star, which is always great for the theatrical business."
Premium formats are carrying a heavy load. PLFs and IMAX represent 53% of the weekend's business so far, with IMAX alone at 16% and PLFs at 37%, per Deadline's Saturday morning tracking. The fall box office, which needed a real hit after a rougher-than-expected debut for 'Practical Magic 2' the week before, got exactly what it was looking for.
Variety separately reported that next weekend brings a trio of new movies, including Paramount's Brad Pitt-led survival thriller 'Heart of the Beast,' Universal and DreamWorks Animation's 'Forgotten Island,' and A24's 'To Catch a Predator'-inspired 'Primetime,' so the fall traffic jam is officially underway. For now, Raccoon City has the whole block to itself.
At the Warner Bros. Pictures panel at CinemaCon 2026, a new film directed by Cregger, the science fiction thriller 'The Flood,' was already announced before this weekend's numbers came in. Whoever greenlit that project is sleeping very well right now.
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CAN I KICK IT? screens New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument, on Aug. 22. (Courtesy SHAOLIN JAZZ)
The live-cinema series CAN I KICK IT? returns to the National Mall this month with what its producers are calling the "Gangsters on the Mall" chapter of their free outdoor summer run. On Saturday, August 22, the SHAOLIN JAZZ production brings the 1991 crime classic New Jack City to the Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument for a night of film, music, and community under the DC summer sky.
What sets the event apart is the sound. As the film plays, DJ 2-Tone Jones builds an original score in real time, reimagining one of the most iconic crime movies of the ’90s through hip-hop, soul, funk, and more. It is less a movie screening than a live performance built around the film.
The details:
Film: New Jack City (1991), with a live soundtrack by DJ 2-Tone Jones
When: Saturday, August 22 — seating opens at 7:30 p.m. (bring lawn chairs and blankets); film begins at 8:30 p.m.
Where: Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument, Independence Ave SW & 15th St NW
A parking note from the organizers: expect road closures and restricted parking east of 14th Street NW due to a separate race event in the District. Roads west of 14th Street NW will be accessible and available for parking.
New Jack City is the second of three screenings in this year’s free CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series, which opened with Black Panther at Skyland Town Center and concludes with Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial on September 5. Produced by the Washington, DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, the series has presented more than 150 live cinematic experiences at venues across the country, from Lincoln Center to SXSW.
"I wanted to be able to tell good stories with substance and remove the ‘ego’ out of the art," said Andrew Huang during a recent interview. Now, he’s building his career at the intersection of discipline, creativity and innovation.
Andrew Huang, founder of New Place Studios. (Courtesy photo)
As a Chinese American, Huang was reared with a deep respect for hard work, consistency and excellence. He describes his childhood as "not so affluent" and later attended college to hone his passion for videography. "In college I tried to do something I loved, which was video, but along the way I knew that I had to find a job. And so I thought, ‘what was the low hanging fruit to get to that stable 9 to 5 job?,’" he stated.
Later in life, Huang found himself working for corporations where his creativity was often limited, eventually leading to burnout. "I worked in a corporation for a long time and there were a lot of missing pieces. I wanted to fill in gaps missing in corporate video production," said Huang.
He later described how his upbringing and a mindset of "survival" led him toward a corporate career. However, his desire for balance and authentic storytelling ultimately pushed him to take the entrepreneurial leap.
"I founded a new place where you can create video and film with ‘substance and style,’" said Huang. His desire for work-life balance and passion for storytelling naturally evolved into a small business based in Virginia. With the launch of New Place Studios, the entrepreneur quickly found himself reconnecting with the values that would become the foundation of everything he creates behind the camera.
Huang said being a business owner has allowed him to first embrace himself. While others may see video as simply capturing moments, he sees it as a way to preserve stories that inspire, connect and leave a lasting imprint.
By combining cinematic visuals with cutting-edge production techniques and a keen understanding of branding, Huang helps organizations and individuals communicate their vision with purpose. He said understanding a client’s "why" serves as the compass for delivering the services they need.
One benefit of working with a small business, he said, is that clients get to see the production process unfold through a micro lens while working with the same faces throughout the entire project. "The work feels personal," said Huang.
Huang does not regret leaving behind the flash-over-substance mentality and corporate hustle culture. That does not mean the Asian American entrepreneur has been without challenges in the industry. "It’s relatively hard to find other Asian American creatives or people who would want to work with me in the DMV," said Huang.
He identifies the industry culture in which everyone is trying to blend in, creatives may fear displaying their Asian identity and some feel pressure to adopt an American corporate persona. He also points to what he describes as a level of gatekeeping within the industry. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2024 statistics, Asian American and Pacific Islander entrepreneurs own more than 3 million businesses and employ 5.2 million people in the United States.
After tapping into organizations such as SCORE, which offers free small business mentorship, New Place Studios has become a trusted creative partner throughout the DMV (Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia). The company produces a range of creative services, including commercials, corporate branding, documentaries, film, 2D animation, motion graphics and photography.
For Huang, entrepreneurship has become more than a departure from corporate life. It has given him the freedom to create with intention, build meaningful connections and tell stories that go beyond the surface.
The 2026 CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
For three Saturdays this summer, some of Washington’s most familiar public spaces will do something they rarely do after dark: fill up with blankets, lawn chairs, and the sound of a movie being scored live, in real time. CAN I KICK IT?, the traveling “live cinema” series produced by the DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, is bringing a free outdoor run to the city — pairing three era-defining films with an original soundtrack performed on the spot by DJ 2-Tone Jones.
The premise is what sets it apart from a normal screening in the park. Rather than simply pressing play, 2-Tone Jones builds a score as the film unfolds, pulling from hip-hop, soul, funk, jazz, rock, electronic music, and sounds from around the world. The result, the organizers say, is less a movie night than a one-time performance — the same film you know, wired to a soundtrack you have never heard and will not hear again. Guest DJs warm up the crowd starting at 7:30 PM before each 8:30 PM screening.
The 2026 outdoor schedule
All three events are free and open to the public.
Saturday, August 8 — Black Panther at Skyland Town Center. A pop-up marketplace and community activities kick off the evening; guest DJs at 7:30 PM, film at 8:30 PM. Marvel’s superhero epic gets a one-night-only live score in Southeast DC.
Saturday, August 22 — New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument. Seating begins at 7:30 PM; the film starts at 8:30 PM. The 1991 crime drama plays out at the foot of one of the country’s most recognizable landmarks.
Saturday, September 5 — Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial. Seating at 7:30 PM; film at 8:30 PM. The series closes with Brian De Palma’s crime saga against the backdrop of the Memorial, scored live from start to finish.
First up: Black Panther at Skyland Town Center on August 8. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
A DC company with a national footprint
SHAOLIN JAZZ describes itself as a Washington-based arts company working at the intersection of music, film, art, and culture, and CAN I KICK IT? is its signature production. According to the organizers, the series has staged more than 150 live cinematic experiences around the country — at performing arts centers, museums, festivals, and cultural institutions including Lincoln Center in New York, SXSW, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Republic Square in Austin, the Tacoma Armory, and The Cary Theater.
“CAN I KICK IT? has always been about creating a shared experience,” said Gerald Watson, co-founder of SHAOLIN JAZZ. “When you combine iconic films with live music in public spaces, something special happens. People aren’t just watching a movie — they’re experiencing it together. That’s what makes these nights so memorable.”
Cinema as a community event
The DC run lands as cities across the country look for new ways to activate public space through arts and culture — and this series is a straightforward pitch for how to do it: take a landmark everyone already knows, add a film everyone has an opinion about, and let a live soundtrack turn the evening into something neighbors experience shoulder to shoulder. Families, film buffs, and music fans are all invited, and admission won’t cost a thing.
The CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series runs August 8, August 22, and September 5. All events are free; check SHAOLIN JAZZ (shaolinjazz.com) for the latest details and any weather updates before heading out.
