Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City

Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City has built a real following in Australia on BINGE and Foxtel Now, and in the US on Hulu and fuboTV among viewers who want their sci-fi to think as hard as it looks. It says what it needs to say in one sitting, no filler. A 6/10 rating says what the writing already makes obvious: this one works. Kaya Scodelario leads a cast that never lets the concept overwhelm the characters. Put it on tonight on BINGE and see for yourself.

There is a reason Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City keeps coming up in conversation. The world-building is meticulous, but it is the characters who carry Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City through its more ambitious moments. Once the booming home of pharmaceutical giant Umbrella Corporation, Raccoon City is now a dying Midwestern town. The company’s exodus left the city a wasteland…with great evil brewing below the surface. When that evil is unleashed, the townspeople are forever…changed…and a small group of survivors must work together to uncover the truth behind Umbrella and make it through the night. The human element stays intact thanks to Kaya Scodelario and Hannah John-Kamen, who anchor every scene. It hit screens in 2021. The world-building is meticulous enough to sustain multiple rewatches, with details early on that only make sense later. It knows exactly what it is, and does not try to be anything else.

For late-night viewing or a proper weekend binge, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City fits the bill. If you have run out of similar titles to watch, this is a strong next pick. The complete film is available and best experienced without too much prior knowledge of where it goes. Kaya Scodelario anchors it with a performance that makes the more abstract moments feel personal. If you have been burned by ambitious sci-fi before, this is the exception.