How to Watch the Resident Evil Movies in Order

Capcom’s Resident Evil horror video game franchise has shambled its way into cinemas several times over the past few decades. So, how do you watch the Resident Evil movies in order?

How Many Resident Evil Movies There Are

There are currently 11 feature-length Resident Evil films, seven of which are live-action and four of which are computer-animated. They’re listed below in release order:

1. Resident Evil (2002)
2. Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004)
3. Resident Evil: Extinction (2007)
4. Resident Evil: Degeneration (2008)
5. Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010)
6. Resident Evil: Retribution (2012)
7. Resident Evil: Damnation (2012)
8. Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2017)
9. Resident Evil: Vendetta (2017)
10. Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (2021)
11. Resident Evil: Death Island (2023)

It’s worth noting that the live-action and animated Resident Evil movies take place within separate continuities. What’s more, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City belongs to yet another version of the canon, as it’s a reboot of the first six movies in the live-action franchise.

With that out of the way, here’s how the Resident Evil films’ chronological watch order breaks down:

How to Watch the Live-Action Resident Evil Movies in Chronological Order

1. Resident Evil (2002)
2. Resident Evil: Apocalypse (2004)
3. Resident Evil: Extinction (2007)
4. Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010)
5. Resident Evil: Retribution (2012)
6. Resident Evil: The Final Chapter (2017)
7. Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (2021)*

*As noted above, you can technically watch Welcome to Raccoon City at any point (or ignore it entirely), given its reboot status. We’ve included it at the end of the above list for completeness’ sake.

How to Watch the Animated Resident Evil Movies in Chronological Order

1. Resident Evil: Degeneration (2008)
2. Resident Evil: Damnation (2012)
3. Resident Evil: Vendetta (2017)
4. Resident Evil: Death Island (2023)

Related: Separate Ways Is a 6-Hour Reminder That Resident Evil 4 Remake Rules

How Long It Takes to Watch Every Resident Evil Movie

Okay, that’s the Resident Evil movies’ watch order covered – but how long will it take you to sit down and watch them all? For that, let’s review the respective runtimes of each entry in the franchise:

1. Resident Evil – 1 hour, 40 minutes
2. Resident Evil: Apocalypse – 1 hour, 33 minutes
3. Resident Evil: Extinction – 1 hour, 34 minutes
4. Resident Evil: Degeneration – 1 hour, 36 minutes
5. Resident Evil: Afterlife – 1 hour, 37 minutes
6. Resident Evil: Retribution – 1 hour, 36 minutes
7. Resident Evil: Damnation – 1 hour, 40 minutes
8. Resident Evil: The Final Chapter – 1 hour, 46 minutes
9. Resident Evil: Vendetta – 1 hour, 37 minutes
10. Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City – 1 hour, 47 minutes
11. Resident Evil: Death Island – 1 hour, 31 minutes

Based on the above, you’ll need to set aside 9 hours, 46 minutes to watch the live-action films (11 hours, 17 minutes if you include Welcome to Raccoon City) and 6 hours, 24 minutes for the animated films. Meanwhile, if you want to watch the whole lot, you’re looking at a whopping 17 hours, 41 minutes of couch time.

And that’s how to watch the Resident Evil movies in order and how long it’ll take.