Barbarian and Weapons director Zach Cregger's latest horror film Resident Evil opened in theatres on Friday to highly positive reviews from critics and audiences. Cregger has told Deadline that he might not do another franchise adaptation and that he dislikes directing such films, although he made an exception for the latest film because he grew up being a fan of the video game it is based on. The positive word of mouth seems to have played a part in the bumper opening for the film in India.
According to data from sources close to Universal Pictures, the film earned a gross collection of 3.02 crore from theatres in India, including its paid previews. This is the highest opening for not only any Resident Evil film at the India box office but also for Zach Cregger. It is also among the biggest opening-day collections for any film based on a video game in the country.
According to data from the box office tracker Sacnilk, the Resident Evil box office collection in India stands at 4.14 crore gross, including 88 lakh so far this Saturday. Besides its original English version, the film has opened in multiple dubbed languages in India comprising Hindi, Tamil and Telugu.
Meanwhile, trade analysts predict a $50 million gross for the film in the US box office by the end of the opening weekend.
The story follows a hapless man (Austin Abrams) entrusted with the act of delivering a courier package at a hospital in a remote location. However, soon, he gets entangled in an outbreak, forcing him to fight for his live amidst an onslaught from numerous mutated creatures.
Besides Abrams, Resident Evil also stars Paul Walter Hauser, Zach Cherry, Kali Reis, and Johnno Wilson, among others.