Netflix's Resident Evil season 2 isn't happening has now broken, it was clear from the show's inception that Netflix's adaptation would be a failure.
The popular Resident Evil video game franchise has been around since 1996, becoming one of the most popular horror gaming series of all time. Known for its creepiness as well as its campiness, the Resident Evil franchise consists of 8 mainline games, tons of spin-offs, seven live-action films, several animated films and TV shows, comics, books, theatrical plays, and more - and the Resident Evil train is far from stopping. While the franchise has undergone a litany of adaptations, none of these attempts have quite lived up to the Resident Evil games. When Netflix's Resident Evil series was first announced, many hoped that it would finally be a faithful adaptation, with the show casting major talent as prominent video game characters, such as actor Lance Reddick presenting a promising casting for Albert Wesker. However, as viewers Netflix's Resident Evil soon found out, the show was far from fulfilling those desires.
Upon the release of Resident Evil, the Netflix series was instantly panned by critics, disappointing both many long-time Resident Evil fans and newcomers alike. Netflix had become known for successful video game adaptations like The Witcher and Castlevania, but Resident Evil left a lot to be desired. The series didn't work as an adaptation or as an original story, and the many ways in which Resident Evil failed made Netflix's decision to cancel it inevitable.
Why Netflix Canceled Resident Evil
Almost the instant Resident Evil came out, viewers took to social media to ridicule the series. s mocked screenshots of the show that showed off its horrendous dialogue, such as the infamous reference to Zootopia fanfiction. Those already familiar with the Resident Evil series weren't the only ones that hated it, though; critics panned the series for its confusing narrative and poor performances. While the show was successful in of viewership, many who watched it seemingly only did so in order to see how much of a train wreck it was. Resident Evil also released during a time of instability for Netflix, with a large number of subscribers canceling their subscriptions due to a lack of quality content. Resident Evil was set to be one of Netflix's next big shows, and in a time when the company maintaining its quality is crucial, it only makes sense for them to cancel the show.
The Problems With Netflix's Resident Evil Adaptation
While Resident Evil movies ignoring the video games, and Netflix's expansive Resident Evil series would've been the perfect opportunity to tell these classic stories. However, the series chose to adapt a confusing and uninteresting story that didn't feel anything like a proper Resident Evil adaptation should.
What Does A Resident Evil Adaptation Need To Get Right?
The main thing that a Resident Evil adaptation needs to do in order to succeed is to embrace what the franchise is. Resident Evil is campy and filled with grotesque yet goofy monsters, but the games take their stories seriously. Castlevania embraced the lore and tone of the games, and while it can feel silly at times, it works because the games already have aspects of this tone, and thus the audience largely already love that silliness. Resident Evil adaptations don't need to make big changes in order to seem cool to newcomers. Instead, it should bring over more of the Resident Evil franchise's classic video game monsters, focus more on suspense than action, and embrace the labyrinthian lore that the games have carefully put together.
Another thing that would help future Resident Evil adaptations would be to just adapt the stories from the games. Resident Evil 2, 4, and 7 have stories that are good enough to fill a season's worth of episodes, and Netflix should've simply pulled from those games. Furthermore, the protagonists of Resident Evil are key to what makes the franchise work. The most beloved games in the series focus on underdogs like Leon and Ethan. Much of the fun of the games comes from seeing these relatively average seeming people face immense threats and succeed; characters like this give the games their heart. The games that focus on being cool, realistic, and action-heavy are the least-popular ones in the franchise, yet it seems like those are the only types of Resident Evil stories studios want to adapt. Netflix tried to change its Resident Evil into something the games aren't, and that's what made its failure and cancellation inevitable.