10 'Resident Evil' Easter Eggs That Only Video Game Fans Will Catch

Published Sep 22, 2026, 5:42 AM EDT

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Carolyn Jenkins is a voracious consumer of film and television. She graduated from Long Island University with an MFA in Screenwriting and Producing where she learned the art of character, plot, and structure. The best teacher is absorbing media and she spends her time reading about different worlds from teen angst to the universe of Stephen King.

Since the first infamous Resident Evil movie was released in 2002, video game fans have been yearning for an honest adaptation. In 2021, Welcome to Raccoon City seemed to be the answer to zombie fatigue, but once again, viewers were disappointed. Though it inched closer to faithfully adapting the games, it was sacrilegious to more than a few characters, most importantly Leon Kennedy. Zach Cregger's third feature film, aptly titled Resident Evil, isn't a strict adaptation, but it is finally the movie that everyone has been waiting for.

The avid lover of the video game franchise brought all of his knowledge to his vision of the world and did not disappoint. Leon may not appear in Cregger's new Resident Evil, but the movie has enough easter eggs to keep video game fans satisfied. The Rotten Tomatoes fresh venture is a quick-paced romp that finally gives the games their due.

1 Bryan Gets a Chance to Save His Progress When He Finds the Typewriter

Image via Capcom

Zach Cregger's classic brand of horror-humor encourages fans into this familiar world of Resident Evil, but things only get real when the hapless protagonist finds the iconic typewriter that all video game players are used to. Bryan (Austin Abrams) gets his first taste of terror on the snowy road to Raccoon City and thinks he finds refuge in a farmhouse. For a while, the movie lulls viewers into a false sense of security as he believes the house to be empty.

Opening one door, he sees a perfectly symmetrical room with a shining typewriter at the center. This occurs in a supposed place of safety in the movie, as well as it would in the game. The typewriter is how players save their progress, and sometimes, finding these locations is few and far between. It means that they have found a place to have some breathing room -- at least for a moment.

2 The Healing Herb Appears In a Blink and You'll Miss It Shot

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Another source of relief for Resident Evil players is the infrequent moments when the magical healing power of the green herb appears. As in any survival horror game, healing is hard to come by, so the sight of this plant is a dose of serotonin for anyone who plays. Bryan doesn't chomp on the green herb in the movie, but he does pass it during his terrifying odyssey through an increasingly infected city.

While taking his tour, Bryan passes many cars, one of which has the familiar silhouette of the herb in the backseat. This moment is a wink at the audience that wouldn't take the uninitiated out of the main plot.

3 'Resident Evil' Harnesses the Frustration of Those Recurring Padlocks

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With every Resident Evil game come puzzles and the frustration and inevitable rush of pride when solving them. One of the most iconic puzzles in the games is the different locks that require specific keys. While it is questionable why a police station or parking garage would be constructed with so many intricate puzzles to unlock doors, it is just another part of the Resident Evil charm.

In Zach Cregger's movie, Bryan encounters these padlocks and gets more and more frustrated as he finds them, just like a typical player. The best in-joke in the movie is when Bryan totals a vehicle when trying to smash through a locked gate, only to find the key to the lock in a relatively close location. These game locks are tricky, and the keys are never where players need them to be.

4 Bryan's Voice Memo Foreshadows His Grisly Fate

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The first sign that Zach Cregger's Resident Evil would not end how typical horror movies do was at the base of his main destination. There had been some hope that somehow Bryan would find a solution to his increasingly grotesque bite, but he submits to despair in the parking garage. Believing that he is doomed, he records a voice memo to his girlfriend, Michelle, just in case he never sees her again.

These are the types of recordings that players find during gameplay that paint a picture of how the outbreak has happened and the circumstances of people who are long gone. Unfortunately for Bryan, he becomes one of these sorry casualties, and recording the voice memo essentially seals his fate.

5 'Resident Evil' Finally Shows a Video Game-Worthy Final Bosses

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Previous iterations of Resident Evil have felt more like typical zombie movies than adaptations of the games. Past attempts have tried, but Zach Cregger's version cracks the code of video game adaptations by replicating the games' unsettling visual aesthetics. Those infected with the T-virus take on many forms, but the most notable are the giant monsters with bulging eyes where there shouldn't be any.

These are the main forms of infected and arguably the most iconic visuals taken from the game. Resident Evil 2 showed villain William Birkin's horrifying form as one of these monsters. Bryan encounters a strange rat-king infected at the beginning of the film, but the closer he gets to Raccoon City, the more he sees different variations of these monsters. Tentacled creatures with bulging eyes are common fare for any Resident Evil fan.

6 The Umbrella Corporation Is Always At Fault in 'Resident Evil'

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If there is an outbreak of T-virus, it's more than likely that the Umbrella Corporation is to blame. This was a component of the less celebrated Resident Evil movies, but Zach Cregger's vision showed -- to comic effect -- the hell that the company brings on Earth. In his Resident Evil feature, the Umbrella Corporation was experimenting with how to evolve humankind to its highest potential. Of course, one thing leads to another, and this experiment escapes.

The Umbrella Corporation's incompetence is always the source of the virus. When Bryan finally makes it to the lab, it is pristine, while everything else is going to hell in the levels below. This gives the movie the exact feeling of completing a classic Resident Evil game.

7 'Resident Evil's RV Showed the Blocked Path in Many Resident Evil Games

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Part of the intrigue of survival horror games is the paths one has to take. Unlike open-world games where there are many routes, Resident Evil forces players to go one direction only -- often towards the most dangerous object. Zach Cregger's story visualizes this with the sequence of Bryan being forced to go through an RV. It blocks all other routes, and the only way out is through.

Sure enough, this direction is the most dangerous one when Bryan encounters an infected girl and is forced to make the hard decision. Only by defeating the monster can he progress to the next level -- er, scene.

8 'Resident Evil's Parking Garage Was a Nod to Resident Evil 2

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Just as padlocks are a familiar visual in Resident Evil games, so too is the looming structure of a locked parking garage. Resident Evil 2 players may be particularly sensitive to the sight. Right as Bryan encounters yet another padlock, he faces the mighty foe of the parking garage. This is a major set piece in the second Resident Evil game, though it is attached to the police station instead of a hospital.

Regardless, this sequence is a stark reminder of evading Mr. X, who chases players through the structure and inside the police station itself. It can become quite hopeless for players who don't have the proper tools to escape, and Bryan echoes this despair in the sequence.

9 Gun Upgrading In 'Resident Evil' Mimics the Video Game Mechanic

Image via Columbia Pictures

There is no Resident Evil without guns, making Bryan's declaration that he is not "a gun guy" even more humorous. There is no way to survive the game without guns and ammunition -- which Bryan also has trouble finding. Opening a million drawers to only find three shells is classic of the video game and not the only component that Zach Cregger's movie echoes.

Bryan also continues to find better guns throughout the film, a clever callback to most horror survival games. Eagle-eyed video game players will notice that all of the guns come from specific moments in the game. Bryan is elated when he finds the pump shotgun that the beloved Resident Evil 4 players receive. He also upgrades to an MP5, which he finds in a familiar-looking case. This is exactly what the storage cases look like in the games, in a clever nod.

10 There's Always Something in the Sewer in 'Resident Evil'

Image via Columbia Pictures

Every Resident Evil player knows to not go into the sewer because that is where the most mutated grotesqueries are. Bryan learns this hard lesson when he discovers a bloated pale ghoul, filled to the brim with contaminated rats. Sewers are famously narrow with few escape routes, which makes them perfect for Resident Evil games.

Zach Cregger also uses the sequence to make clever allusions to the perspective of the games. Though Resident Evil doesn't have a monopoly on a fixed perspective, it is the first game came to fruition before Resident Evil 2 was remade for a more modern audience.