‘Resident Evil’ Movie Ranking: Every Film’s Place in the Franchise

The eighth movie in the Resident Evil franchise, aptly titled Resident Evil, has been released and broken all previous records, despite the franchise’s shaky track record. It has even surpassed director Zach Cregger’s previous films, earning the highest critics’ score of his directorial career on Rotten Tomatoes. 

It’s time to rank every Resident Evil movie, from the forgettable entries to the franchise’s best. 

8. Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2016)

Paul W.S. Anderson’s conclusion of Alice’s story didn’t sit well with the audience and was even considered the director’s worst. The film exploded with action scenes that didn’t support the plot, and the pacing felt off. Everything felt all over the place and moved too quickly to follow in real time. Heavy reliance on the franchise’s mythology, rapid editing that rushed the ending, underdeveloped new characters, and complex plot twists derail this outing. What could’ve connected the series for a fantastic ending instead left us with a cliffhanger conclusion, making The Final Chapter the worst entry.   

7. Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004)

Directed by Alexander Witt and a follow-up to the 2002 original, this entry lives up to its name by moving away from the horror of the first film. Resident Evil set the bar quite high, and even Milla Jovovich couldn’t save Apocalypse from disaster. The sequel leans heavily into action, a familiar and straightforward survival trope that is less compelling than its predecessor. Alice has become almost a superhuman, reducing her vulnerability. The film also delivers disappointing character development for one of the series’ most recognizable villains, Nemesis, and features thinly written supporting characters. 

6. Resident Evil: Retribution (2012)

Again helmed by Anderson, Retribution’s story is at least better than its 2016 successor. However, the story doesn’t move beyond typical survival tropes, which, at this point, are overdone. Though the expanding mythology with the Red Queen storyline was a good move, the film served more as a bridge to the next installment than a solid entry on its own. 

The film moves up a bit in this ranking thanks to well-choreographed action scenes, where Jovovich excels. It was also nice to get a sneak peek into the Umbrella Corporation’s training facility, even if it lacked a clear story structure. For viewers looking for the survival-horror atmosphere, Retribution was a great offering but felt disconnected from the franchise’s horror roots. 

5. Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010)

Anderson took the director’s chair here again but somehow knew what he was doing. Though the film shows Alice still navigating the wastelands, it retains a strong sense of dread and stays closer to the games, making it a somewhat stronger adventure in the series. 

One of the game’s most recognizable protagonists finally appeared: Chris Redfield, played by Wentworth Miller, a welcome addition for fans. The executioner Majini and the Las Plagas-influenced creatures made their mark on the series’ fourth cinematic chapter. With slow-motion sequences, Anderson prioritized spectacle alongside some of the most gripping action and gunfights.

4. Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (2021)

Johannes Roberts’ Welcome to Raccoon City directly adapts from the Resident Evil 1 and 2 video games. It brings iconic characters — such as Chris (Robbie Amell) and Claire Redfield (Kaya Scodelario), Jill Valentine (Hannah John-Kamen), Leon Kennedy (Avan Jogia), Albert Wesker (Tom Hopper), and Ada Wong (Lily Gao) — into the cinematic spotlight. It doesn’t feature Jovovich, but it has a stronger connection to the source material by including signature game locations. 

Cramming two games into one story was a bad idea, though, which meant Spencer Mansion, the Raccoon City Police Department, and various characters shared limited screen time. Consequently, the pacing was uneven as some parts felt rushed rather than flowing naturally. The third act may be crowded, but the film’s darker and horror-focused atmosphere gave it an edge over the more action-heavy entries.  

3. Resident Evil: Extinction (2007)

The gnarly zombie slicing continued in Russell Mulcahy’s Resident Evil: Extinction. Despite a messy script and hollow characters, the punchy action scenes are worth praising, reminding us why Jovovich was the best choice for the franchise. Instead of keeping the action inside the laboratories, Extinction jumped outside into the post-apocalyptic world.  

The wasteland setting, with desert highways and abandoned buildings, was a positive turn, as the survivors were not only fighting zombies but also trying to find food and water. This made the story stronger with a convincing survival angle. Super-zombies and infected crows were among the film’s highlights. 

2. Resident Evil (2002)

It’s tempting to call Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil a tie with the 2002 original, but the latter ultimately takes the second spot in this ranking. Being the first-ever Resident Evil film, it was fascinating to see familiar concepts like the T-virus, Umbrella Corporation, zombies, the Hive, and the Licker take shape on the big screen. 

Rather than immediately turning the movie into a massive zombie outbreak, it begins in a mysterious, claustrophobic underground facility where dark corridors, locked rooms, and security systems kept the audience wondering what happened. The curiosity and suspense remained intact without overexplaining anything. The laser corridor scene is still one of the series’ most iconic moments, perfectly complementing the film’s gory horror and fast-paced action. Resident Evil captured enough of the game’s DNA to leave a lasting impression to date. 

1. Resident Evil (2026)

If Cregger’s Resident Evil hadn’t been released, the 2002 original would have been the best in the franchise by far. Cregger’s film has an original story while keeping the game aesthetics alive. It brings the game’s visual language to life, capturing the first-person perspective, the raised gun in view, and the instinct to check every shadowy corner for danger. Viewers feel the protagonist’s anxiety as he keeps track of how many bullets he has left. 

The 2002 movie obviously leaned heavily into early-2000s action and gained mixed-to-negative reviews for deviating from Capcom’s source material. In contrast, Cregger’s 2026 reboot is considered the most faithful cinematic translation of the video game ever made in Hollywood, with a hyper-connected, post-digital reality that modern fans love. 

This factor also helps explain how deep the love for the 2002 and 2026 movies is. The 2002 film resonated strongly with Millennials, while the 2026 reboot has found a bigger connection with Gen Z audiences. Choosing one over the other is no easy task, as both generations have their own reasons for favoring the film that defined their era, including the distinct technological aesthetics that shaped each movie.  

List Courtesy of Madiha Ali

Feature Image Credit to Sony Pictures