Resident Evil Showrunner Explains Why the Series Is Releasing So Close to the Recent Movie

The upcoming Resident Evil series at Netflix just dropped some thrilling new teaser trailers this week and ComicBook.com happened to be one of the lucky few to recently speak with showrunner Andrew Dabb. The series will officially be released on July 14th, and that's relatively close to when the last film in the franchise hit theaters. Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City was released last fall and was met with a dismal response, so you'd think the folks behind the series might be a little worried, but it seems that they developed both projects simultaneously.

"They were developed almost simultaneously," said Dabb, speaking to a group of media. "And in some ways that was very freeing for us, because the number one thing you'll see from fans is they want a straight adaptation. Well, the good news is they have it. It's a very well-done adaptation of the first two games. And so for us, it was like, 'OK, well, they're doing that let us go and kind of forge our own path.'"

"So, it's not a coincidence, it was kind of designed that way," added Dabb. "And the idea being that, you know, these two things can exist side by side, again, because everything Welcome to Raccoon City is exploring and subsequent movies explore are things that happen in our world. That doesn't mean we're gonna be sharing actors and things like that, that becomes more complicated. Obviously, their Wesker is not young Lance Reddick. But, you know, that was a choice that was made by Constantin and to kind of develop the most on page."

Netflix describes the series as follows: "Year 2036 – 14 years after a deadly virus caused a global apocalypse, Jade Wesker fights for survival in a world overrun by the blood-thirsty infected and insane creatures. In this absolute carnage, Jade is haunted by her past in New Raccoon City, by her father's chilling connections to the Umbrella Corporation but mostly by what happened to her sister, Billie." 

Netflix's Resident Evil series will feature eight one-hour episodes and will be executive produced by Andrew Dabb, Mary Leah Sutton, Robert Kulzer and Oliver Berben. The series will star Ella Balinska, Tara Smart,  Siena Agudong, Adeline Rudolph, Paola Nuñez, Ahad Raza Mir, Connor Gossati, Turlough Convery, and Lance Reddick as Albert Wesker. All episodes of the series will hit Netflix on July 14th!

What do you think about Andrew Dabb's comments? Are you excited to see Netflix's Resident Evil series? Let us know in the comments section below or by hitting up our writer @NateBrail on Twitter!