(Photo by Screen Gems/courtesy Everett Collection. RESIDENT EVIL: APOCALPYSE.)

Resident Evil Movies In Order: How To Watch The Series Chronologically

Resident Evil: Apocalypse celebrates its 20th anniversary!

When Resident Evil launched for the PlayStation in 1996, it turned survival horror into a household name, defined by the Capcom game’s use of dynamic and cinematic camera angles, a mysterious and increasingly ludicrous plot, and relentless dread punctuated by exploding zombie heads from a judiciously angled shotgun blast. No wonder it had gamers and Hollywood execs alike seeing stars. Godfather of the undead George A. Romero famously wrote a script, and neared pre-production. Ultimately, the Resident Evil adaptation would fall into the hands of Paul W.S. Anderson, who had freaked audiences earlier in the ’90s with the Dead Space-inspiring Event Horizon.

If you want to watch the Resident Evil movies in order, check out the list below. Anderson directed most of them and cast his wife Milla Jovovich as original lead character Alice, with the rest of the game cast appearing even if they bore little resemblance from the source, including Jill Valentine, Chris and Clare Redfield, Leon Kennedy, Ada Wong, and Albert Wesker. Sinister megacorp Umbrella and their virus experimenting shenanigans also make up the story’s backbone. And while you couldn’t argue Anderson’s movies matches the measured mood and atmosphere that made the first few games such landmark terrifiers, once Capcom released Resident Evil 4 in 2004 and shifted their own material towards big-time action, it became moot anyways.

The Resident Evil movies in order, from the 2002 original to the so-far accurately titled Final Chapter:

36% Resident Evil (2002)

18% Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004)

24% Resident Evil: Extinction (2007)

21% Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010)

28% Resident Evil: Retribution (2012)

But wait, there’s more! First, let’s acknowledge there was a movie reboot called Welcome to Raccoon City, and also that Netflix series. Okay, done. Now, let’s dive into Capcom’s own computer-animated movie series, which are set in the same continuity of the games. That means bask well in Leon’s himbo one-liners, and witness Chris transformation from S.T.A.R.S. errand mule to jacked boulder-punching asshole. All of these CG movies, and the series Infinite Darkness, are set between Resident Evil 4 and Resident Evil 7. The most recent, Death Island, gets the whole gang together for the first time, especially rewarding for long-time fans since Jill hadn’t been part of the story since the 2009 Resident Evil 5 game.

67% Resident Evil: Degeneration (2008)

50% Resident Evil: Infinite Darkness

100% Resident Evil: Damnation (2012)

43% Resident Evil: Vendetta (2017)

71% Resident Evil: Death Island (2023)

Below, you can see all the Resident Evil movies, both live-action and animated, all by release order.