Zach Cregger says removing jokes from Resident Evil improved the movie for test audiences and for him.
“I learned that people really like the movie, but they thought it was too funny. So over the course of my testing, I stripped out as much of the jokes as possible,” he said.
The film follows Austin Abrams as a medical courier caught in the outbreak in Raccoon City. Cregger wanted its monsters, gore and scares to capture the experience of playing the games, with humor woven into the horror.
That mix fits the director’s background in the sketch-comedy group The Whitest Kids U’ Know. He’s compared Resident Evil’s tone to Evil Dead II, combining horror with dark humor and slapstick.
Even after the cuts, Abrams’ comic performance remained a selling point. Rotten Tomatoes’ consensus says his “crack comedic timing provides crucial levity.”
Cregger said the testing helped him find a version he preferred: “I found out not only did the audience enjoy the movie more, but I also liked the movie a lot more.”
