The new Resident Evil movie from director Zach Cregger hit theaters on September 18, and it had a scary-good first weekend at the box office. The movie got great reviews but some people didn’t like the ending specifically.
Cregger said in new interviews that he respects that, but doesn’t agree–and the ending was almost totally different.
This story contains major spoilers.
The Resident Evil movie ends by revealing that Austin Abrams’ character, Bryan, becomes an infected demon after getting bitten by a child, and that the movie is actually the origin story of a monster that you might find in the games. The syringe carrying the cure to the virus shatters on the ground. In the original version, Cregger said the syringe with the cure also broke, but at that moment, Bryan simply went on a killing spree.
However, test screenings resulted in negative feedback, with people saying this was deflating and meant that the story was “over.” However, Cregger told Collider that he filmed a second sequence as a Plan B, and that’s the one that ended up in the movie where people root for Bryan to be cured. It led to a greater emotional journey for viewers, Cregger said, though not everyone agrees.
“I shot that shot of the scientist putting the needle in his pocket just because I had a feeling. I was like, ‘I feel like I’m going to need that.’ Then we were able to build a new sequence at the end. I shot a contingency of him going for the stab … just like, if I need it, I should just get it. And thank God because that’s what we ended up using,” he said. “Because it keeps the stakes all the way until the end. It’s like, ‘Save him, save him!’ Whereas before it was like, ‘Kill them I guess? Kill them all?'”
In a separate interview with The New Flesh Horror Movie Podcast, Cregger said he liked the idea of Bryan reaching his “final form” as a mutant monster, especially because it’s not what you’d expect.
“This whole movie wasn’t this guy who saves the world. It was the origin story of a monster. It recontextualizes everything, and I like a movie that punches you in the face,” he said. “I like a movie that does not give you what you want, but what it does give you is more impactful.”
Some of the feedback Cregger said he received was that people enjoyed the movie up until the ending. If you’re in that crowd, Cregger said he respects your opinion, but he made the movie he wanted to.
“That’s too bad. I don’t care. It does not bother me at all. If you don’t like the ending, we just disagree. I respect it. But I would never in a million years change it.”
Given how Resident Evil ended, it sure seems like there are more stories to told, and Cregger himself has said he does have sequel ideas in mind. That being said, Cregger has also said he is finished making franchise movies after getting lots of hate from fans of the Resident Evil games.
In addition to changing the ending, Cregger made other adjustments to the film based on screen tests, including removing a lot of jokes.