Resident Evil's lead was as shocked as you by that ending — and says most films now are too scared to do it
Abrams told The Hollywood Reporter he loves that Cregger refused to give the audience a safety net.
Right, fair warning—spoilers ahead for the ending of Resident Evil (the new film, not the games or all that Paul W.S. Anderson business). If you’ve not seen it yet and care about surprises, you know the drill—probably look away.
Zach Cregger’s take on Resident Evil has set things off with a bang. We’re not talking mild success here—it’s smashed the franchise’s box office record out the gate and, frankly, people seem chuffed. Critics too, bizarrely enough, which if you remember previous Resident Evil films, is almost history-defying.
Resident Evil has beaten the previous franchise best for opening weekend takings.
That ending (yes, THAT ending)
The film rides on Austin Abrams as Bryan, your everyday medical courier, who just wants to get through his shift only to end up in absolute mayhem: think zombies, shady bio-corporations, and a night that goes from bad to all-time catastrophic. For most of the 95-minute blitz, we’re following Bryan’s increasingly desperate attempts to keep breathing—so you might expect a cheeky sequel setup or at least some light at the end of it all. You’d be wrong.
Instead, Cregger decides to stamp out any hope: Bryan doesn’t make it. He gets infected, and, in a kick in the teeth for anyone actually rooting for him, transforms into one of the very horrors he’s been legging it from all night. It’s the sort of finale that’s bound to split the room—whether you think it’s gutting, brave, or just plain cruel probably depends on your taste for director prankery.
Read more: Cregger's Resident Evil doubled the franchise's best-ever opening — and beat his own Weapons
Reactions and risks
Now, Austin Abrams, the man himself, has given his own take. Here’s what he reckons about that bonkers final twist, speaking to The Hollywood Reporter:
I've been living with it for a while now, but I thought it was crazy and shocking when I first read it. I love that Zach takes those risks. You follow this one guy the whole time, so hopefully you're enjoying watching him and rooting for him. Then to have him not make it is really risky and gutsy, which is what I love about all of Zach's work. So I was surprised by it, but I also loved that he would take that chance.
He goes on to say—in paraphrase, to save your scrolling—that most big films these days are a bit too careful, never truly letting you lose a character you’ve invested in. They wrap it up with a nice safety net so it doesn’t sting. But Cregger, according to Abrams, is braver: more like those older horror flicks that don’t coddle the audience, but make you feel every punch.
Critical verdict (and a heavy dose of carnage)
For those who’d rather get a critic’s take than trust the word of a traumatised Bryan, Chris Bumbray from our end liked it quite a lot: he’s called Resident Evil “among the most exciting films in recent memory,” arguing that Cregger’s managed to cram enough action and gore for about three other films into a seriously lean hour and a half. It’s bloody, relentless, and—yes—properly shocking at the finish. If you want the full review breakdown, that’s up. But if you’re here for the post-mortem on the ending, you’re not the only one still processing that transformation scene.