Resident Evil Director Speaks Out After $363M Success

Ever wonder what it feels like to prove the internet wrong? Resident Evil director Zach Cregger knows the feeling. His movie just became the highest-grossing and highest-rated Resident Evil film ever, pulling in $363 million globally. Not bad for a project that had plenty of skeptics before launch.

In a new interview with A Shot, Cregger was asked if he felt vindicated. "I don't know if I feel vindicated," he said. "I'm gratified. I'm gratified that people responded to it." He's not rubbing it in—just happy the audience showed up. And show up they did: the film is also the No. 9 highest-grossing video game movie of all time.

Before release, Cregger admitted he was "naive" to think gamers would embrace his vision. Fans wanted a direct adaptation of classic Resident Evil storylines and characters, but his movie deliberately went its own way. That choice sparked backlash in some circles, though the box office tells a different story.

Cregger has a theory about online criticism. He says the "problem with the internet" is its anonymity—people dig their heels in and never apologize or change their minds. So instead of engaging, he's decided to just move on. "The only real way, I feel like, to do anything with it is to just not engage with it and just move on with your life," he explained.

That backlash actually makes him more excited for his next project, The Flood—an original sci-fi film starring Jennifer Lawrence. "I'm just feeling very grateful that my next movie is an original movie and it can be judged entirely on the merits of the movie and not what people think it should or should not do," he said.

As for franchises? Cregger says he's done with them. He wants to "write whatever I want to write" rather than adhere to established lore. "I don't want to write something where I have to make sure I'm tagging different data points to satisfy X. I just want to satisfy me," he said. The only reason he took on Resident Evil was because he's a big fan of the games and had what he believed was an original idea. The reported $20 million paycheck probably didn't hurt either.

So what do you think—should directors stick to faithful adaptations or swing for something original? Will you be checking out Cregger's next film? Let us know in the comments!