Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil post-credits scene lands with Sony Pictures projecting a $40 million opening weekend in roughly 3,500 North American theaters. The reboot opens Friday, and that number puts the film on pace to set the franchise’s best launch yet.
Los Angeles and $40 Million
Monday’s projection matters because a $40 million debut would top every earlier Resident Evil opening and do it with a $75 million production budget in the background. Cregger said at the Los Angeles premiere, “I felt pretty confident,” and added, “We’ll see. Maybe I’m delusional, but I don’t think so. I’ve seen the movie, and I like it.”
3,500 North American theaters gives the film room to turn that confidence into a strong first frame. For a franchise that has already grossed more than $1.2 billion worldwide, the size of the rollout suggests Sony Pictures is treating this reboot as a wide commercial test, not a cautious relaunch.
Rotten Tomatoes and Raccoon City
96 percent on Rotten Tomatoes gives Resident Evil a very different starting point from the franchise’s earlier screen history. Frank Scheck called it “crafted a propulsive, simultaneously terrifying and hilarious thrill ride that showcases both his cinematic chops and perverse sense of humor.”
2002 set the old bar at $17.7 million domestically for Paul W.S. Anderson’s Resident Evil, which later passed $100 million globally. Milla Jovovich then carried five sequels, while Kaya Scodelario led Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City in 2021, a version that underperformed at the box office.
Austin Abrams and the Upside
Austin Abrams leads the cast with Zach Cherry, Kali Reis and Paul Walter Hauser, and his character is a medical courier trying to deliver a precious item during a deadly viral outbreak in Raccoon City. That setup gives the reboot a cleaner commercial lane than the franchise’s more crowded earlier entries, especially with a reception profile that is stronger than the series’ usual critical track record.
Some third-party tracking services have already pushed expectations close to $50 million or higher, so the first weekend is now a real range rather than a single number. If Resident Evil lands near Sony Pictures’ projection, it clears the franchise’s old opening record; if it climbs toward the higher estimate, Cregger’s reboot arrives as a much firmer theatrical launch than this series has ever had.
