What is Netflix’s live-action Resident Evil series about?

Netflix’s live-action Resident Evil series is arriving this week! Starting on Thursday, July 14, fans of the long-running horror franchise will be able to watch all eight episodes of the show’s first season whenever they want. Andrew Dabb of Supernatural fame serves as the showrunner, executive producer and writer on the show.

Dabb is joined by Mary Leah Sutton, who is also an executive producer and writer, and executive producers Robert Kulzer and Oliver Berben of Constantin Film. The series stars Lance Reddick, Ella Balinska, Tamara Smart, Siena Agudong, Adeline Rudolph, Paola Nuñez, Ahad Raza Mir, Connor Gosatti and Turlough Convery.

The show takes place in two timelines, one in year 2022, right before the outbreak that ends the world, and one in 2036, 14 years later after Joy destroyed most of the world.

What is Resident Evil about?

We start in 2036, following up on Jade Wesker’s fight for survival. Not only is she haunted by her father, Albert Wesker’s, connections to the dangerous Umbrella Corporation, but we also get to watch a mystery unravel regarding what happens to Jade’s sister, Billie Wesker.

Here’s the official logline from Netflix:

"Year 2036 – 14 years after Joy caused so much pain, Jade Wesker fights for survival in a world overrun by the blood-thirsty infected and mind-shattering creatures. In this absolute carnage, Jade is haunted by her past in New Raccoon City, by her father’s chilling connections to the sinister Umbrella Corporation but mostly by what happened to her sister, Billie."

Those who love the video games will find tons of fun references and easter eggs to the original source material throughout the show’s eight, hour-long episodes.

But for the most part, you don’t need to be intimately familiar with the games or movies to understand what’s happening in the series, as it mostly exists in its own continuity. Throughout the first season, some aspects of the game, like creatures and characters, are  introduced into the world, but the show is always accessible to newcomers.

Don’t miss out on Resident Evil when it premieres this Thursday on Netflix.