Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil Was Inspired by Die Hard & Two Surprising Classics

According to director Zach Cregger, his upcoming Resident Evil movie has drawn inspiration from several 1980s classics, including Die Hard. In a recent interview, Cregger explained how the iconic action thriller, along with two other well-known titles, provided reference points for the lead performance in his upcoming survival feature.

Zach Cregger reveals how Die Hard and more ‘80s classics shaped Resident Evil

While speaking with MovieWeb, the 45-year-old filmmaker revealed that he and the movie’s lead, Austin Abrams, often turned to movies such as Die Hard, Back to the Future, and even Home Alone to figure out the protagonist’s reactions in different sequences.

“We would huddle up, and it’d be a scene; [Austin Abrams] would be like, ‘Do you think I’m more like McLean [Die Hard] or McFly [Back to the Future] here?’ It’s like, you’re McFly here,” recalled Cregger. “Most of the movie you’re McFly. You’re just kind of like, I don’t know, I don’t know what to do. You know, like that’s your baseline. And every once in a while you get to do something badass, and you’re John McClane. And then a lot of times, you know, you’re a total little b—-, and you’re Kevin McAllister [Home Alone].”

During the interview, the Resident Evil director also spoke about how he decided to cast Abrams in the leading role while he was still helming his previous movie, Weapons. “I’d written this before I shot Weapons, and while we were shooting Weapons, I kind of knew I was like, this dude [Austin Abrams], like we just had such a good thing on that movie,” Cregger noted. “I just, if you can’t tell, I adore Austin like, to pieces. I just, I love him, and we had such a great time making that chapter of that movie, and so it was kind of like it was a done deal while we were shooting Weapons.”

The Resident Evil movie is currently on track to hit theaters on September 18, 2026.

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