Paul Walter Hauser Joins Zach Cregger’s New RESIDENT EVIL Movie
The world of Resident Evil is heading back to the big screen, and this time Paul Walter Hauser is joining the fight against the undead. Deadline reports that Hauser has signed on to star alongside Austin Abrams in Zach Cregger’s upcoming adaptation of Capcom’s iconic survival horror franchise for Sony Pictures.
Cregger, fresh off the success of Weapons, is set to direct and co-wrote the script with Shay Hatten. The project is being produced by Constantin Film, Vertigo Entertainment, and PlayStation Productions, with Robert Kulzer, Roy Lee, Miri Yoon, Asad Qizilbash, and Carter Swan producing.
Plot details are still being kept under wraps, but fans know what to expect from a Resident Evil film: a mix of horror, sci-fi, and action with survivors battling swarms of zombies and the sinister Umbrella Corporation.
Cregger talked about his take on Capcom’s iconic horror franchise saying: "All I can say is that it is true to the experience of the games, andtakes place in the world of the games."
According to Cregger, the story will keep things focused and faithful, and explains: "And what that means is, it follows one protagonist from point A to point B as they just descend deeper and deeper and deeper into hell."
Sony has locked in a theatrical release for September 18, 2026. The studio has a long history with the franchise, having distributed every Resident Evil movie to date, which together have pulled in over $1.2 billion worldwide, making it one of the most successful video game movie series ever.
Hauser is coming into this project hot off a stacked year. He recently won an Emmy, Golden Globe, and Critics Choice Award for his chilling performance in Apple TV+’s Black Bird.
In 2025 alone, he starred in three very different films: Marvel’s The Fantastic Four: First Steps as fan-favorite Mole Man, Paramount’s Naked Gun as Ed Hocken Jr., and Lionsgate’s Americana, where he played a haunted military veteran in a modern Western.
He’s also earned acclaim for his role in IFC Films’ The Luckiest Man in America, which premiered at TIFF 2024 to glowing reviews. Coming up, Hauser will appear opposite Jeremy Allen White in 20th Century’s Deliver Me From Nowhere, a Bruce Springsteen biopic.
He also just wrapped Amazon MGM Studios’ Balls Up and Brian Swibel’s thriller The Very Best People, while continuing work on New Line Cinema’s Chris Farley biopic Farley.
