2021’s Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City acts as a reset for the franchise’s film segment, following the events of the video games to a more faithful degree than previous iterations. Many references will be easily recognizable to those with even a cursory knowledge of the franchise, such as characters, outfits, and zombies. However, in a movie that relies on imagery and story elements from several different video games (some of which are over twenty years old), some details will inevitably be missed. We’ve crafted a guide to the Easter eggs and references sprinkled throughout the film. Beware of spoilers ahead.
Truck Driver
An early scene of Welcome to Raccoon City follows a hitchhiking Claire Redfield (Kaya Scodelario), the truck driver who picked her up, and the truck driver’s doberman as they drive into Raccoon City. The driver, distracted by his conversation with Claire and his messy hamburger, hits a woman who was standing in the road. The scene is nearly a shot-for-shot recreation of a scene from the recent Resident Evil 2 remaster, with the notable difference that the trucker is attacked by the infected woman in the game, whereas in the film he is infected by his dog.
Jill Sandwich
Early in the film, the S.T.A.R.S. (Special Tactics and Rescue Service) agents sit together in a Raccoon City diner, joking between one another before receiving their assignment. In a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it quip, fan favorite character Jill Valentine (Hannah John-Kamen) playfully snatches a sandwich from Wesker (Tom Hopper), teasing: “It’s a Jill sandwich now." This is a reference to the original Resident Evil game, where Barry Burton saves Jill from a room with a collapsing ceiling, joking: “That was too close, you were almost a Jill sandwich!” The line was updated in the 2002 remake of the game to: “That was a close one, a second late, you would have fit nicely into a sandwich.” For our money, we think the movie features the least cringey iteration of the joke.
Itchy Tasty
Upon returning to Raccoon City, Claire visits her brother Chris’ (Robbie Amell) house. As she moves through the house she notices his neighbor, a distressed, t-virus infected mother, who has written the phrase “Itchy Tasty” in blood on his window. The unsettling words harken back to a journal called the “Keeper’s Diary” featured in the first Resident Evil game. Its passages document the owner’s declining mental state as they succumb to the t-virus, noting that they feel itchy all over. They also document killing and eating another human, describing him as tasty. The final journal entry contains the inscription:
Itchy.
Tasty.
Ashford Twins
As Claire and Leon (Avan Jogia) explore the underground Umbrella facility, they find a film reel showing Doctor William Birkin (Neal McDonough) and two young children who are referred to as the Ashford twins. The demented brother pulls the wings from a dragonfly before dropping it’s helpless body into a pile of ants. The film reel is a nearly identical recreation of the one found in the game Resident Evil: Code Veronica, which dives further into the twins Alfred and Alexia’s backstory. The pair are said to have developed the T-Veronica virus, and deformed adult versions of the two serve as bosses later in the game.
Spencer Mansion Zombie
When our protagonists enter the Spencer mansion, they’re greeted with quiet hallways and an eerie sense of foreboding. They stumble upon a man who appears to be eating something on the ground. Hearing their presence, he looks up from his meal over his shoulder, revealing his grotesque, infected face and unfortunate victim. This mirrors the first appearance of an infected in the original Resident Evil game, and has become one of the franchise's most iconic image.
Would You Rather?
Much of the charm in Welcome to Raccoon City comes from watching recognizable characters bounce off one another on the big screen. In one such sequence, Jill Valentine asks her S.T.A.R.S. colleague Richard Aiken (Chad Rook) if he’d rather die being eaten by a giant snake, or by a great white shark. Both of these horrific outcomes befall Richard in the Resident Evil video game, depending on which decisions the player makes.
First Aid Spray
The Resident Evil games are notorious for purposely withholding resources from the player, be it ammunition or healing supplies. One such item, the First Aid Spray, heals the player’s character, allowing them to live another day fighting t-virus infected zombies. In the film’s early sequence set in the Raccoon City Orphanage, an advertisement for First Aid Spray can be seen in a quick shot.
Palm Pilot Map
Much of Welcome to Raccoon City feels like a contemporary movie, and only rarely does it remind you that it actually takes place in 1998. One such reminder is the palm pilot given to Wesker with instructions and maps to help him navigate the Spencer mansion. The on-screen maps are in a nearly identical style to those found in early Resident Evil games.
Card Suit Keys
As Claire and Leon navigate to the Spencer mansion via underground tunnels from the Raccoon City Orphanage, they use several keys to unlock various doors. Each key has a suit from a deck of cards (clubs, diamonds, hearts, and spades) attached to the top. These same keys are used throughout the Resident Evil 2 game.
Rocket Launcher Finisher
In the final sequence of the movie, Claire, Chris, and Leon (Avan Jogia) escape the Umbrella laboratory via an underground train. A heavily mutated William Birkin attacks the train, and for a brief moment, it appears our heroes have found a monster too powerful to defeat. Cue Leon entering the car from first class with a newfound rocket launcher, which he subsequently uses to kill Birkin. This is a nod to the not so subtle tradition of Resident Evil final bosses being finished off via projectile missiles, with the number of occurrences increasing as the games strayed farther from horror and into action.
Monsters
The Resident Evil franchise is famous for its grotesque, infected monsters, often becoming increasingly deformed throughout the game. Welcome to Raccoon City brings several standouts from the games to the silver screen, including Cerberus, the Licker, and Lisa Trevor.