Director Zach Cregger has said he does not plan to reuse iconic Resident Evil character Leon S. Kennedy for his upcoming Resident Evil film, reasoning that he would be unable to improve on the character as already portrayed in the video games. Instead, Cregger intends to build the new adaptation around original characters, a decision likely to shape expectations for how closely the film will hew to the source material's established cast.

The remarks come as anticipation builds for the new Resident Evil movie, tied to the game series' upcoming instalment Resident Evil Requiem. Beyond the comment about Leon, limited further detail on plot, casting or release timing was available in the article.