The Scariest Monsters In The Resident Evil Series Ranked
Back in 1996, "Resident Evil" redefined the survival horror genre when it comes to video games.
A smash hit on the original PlayStation, "Resident Evil" popularized zombies yet again, returning them to the pop culture zeitgeist. It also spawned a series of movies starring Milla Jovovich as Alice — the quintessential lone survivor who was created especially for the film series.
"Resident Evil" and its sequels borrowed plenty from the video games, including a gallery of horrific creations unleashed by the Umbrella Corporation. These monsters aren't just shuffling zombies. No, they're the stuff of nightmares.
The Umbrella Corporation is infamous for the release of the T-Virus in the original game, which decimated Spencer Mansion and the surrounding Raccoon City. But it's also behind some of the grisliest monsters in the series. And the "Resident Evil" movies showcase some of the very scariest.
It may have all begun with your run-of-the-mill zombies, but recent "Resident Evil" films have dialed the action and horror up to 11, with some of the goriest monsters from the games making their big-screen debut. Whether it's the Nemesis from "Resident Evil: Apocalypse" or the bioweapon seen at the end of "Welcome to Raccoon City," the "Resident Evil" series goes all-in on the creepiest, most horrific monsters from the games. And it looks as though Netflix's upcoming "Resident Evil" TV series might follow in their bloody footsteps.
Which are the most terrifying? Here's our ranking of the scariest Resident Evil monsters.
10. The Undead (Resident Evil)
A classic movie monster that appears throughout the "Resident Evil" franchise, we first stumble upon these shambling horrors in "Resident Evil" when Alice and a group of commandos unwittingly release the zombified staff of The Hive — a secret underground facility beneath Raccoon City.
Initially contained within The Hive by the Red Queen A.I., the undead staff members are essentially patient zeroes for an infection that would eventually sweep the globe. The Hive is a hidden lab owned by the Umbrella Corporation that is experimenting with bioweapons, where the T-Virus had been accidentally unleashed.
The result is that the scientists and office staff of The Hive were transformed into undead monsters, endlessly seeking out the flesh of the living. Much like your traditional zombies, the T-Virus zombies have a hunger for human flesh due to the brain damage inflicted by the virus ... but with the virus also making them physically stronger, these zombies prove to be a bit more of a challenge than your traditional shufflers.
How did this happen? Well, that's the entire plot of "Resident Evil" which sees a group of commandos enter The Hive and unwittingly break the facility's containment, unleashing hell on the surrounding city ... and eventually, the world.
9. Licker (Resident Evil)
Another resident of The Hive, the Licker first appears in "Resident Evil" as a genetic experiment created by Umbrella Corporation. Their origin is unclear, but it's thought they were created by injecting the T-Virus into live rabbits.
Alice and the commandos unwittingly release one of the Lickers from its container during a zombie ambush ... but are unaware of their mistake until the end of the movie. After running loose through the complex, the Licker eventually finds Spence Parks — killing him and feeding on his corpse.
It's here that we see the Licker's special ability: rapid mutation.
Feeding on human flesh allows the Licker to mutate further, becoming stronger and faster, with enhanced muscle mass. Even more disturbingly, its jaw splits in two, turning into mandibles while bony spines grow out of its back. The Lickers get their name from their disgustingly long tongue, used by the creatures as a weapon. They're known for their hideous appearance and exposed brain, as well as a lack of skin. Gross.
The video game version of the Lickers differs slightly ... and it's far, far worse. These are actually based on the human zombies, suffering a second set of mutations that makes them even more monstrous, turning them into Lickers. Tough break, huh?
8. Executioner (Resident Evil: Afterlife)
Here's Johnny! The Executioners are the ax-wielding monsters we first encountered in "Resident Evil: Afterlife" and prove to be a terrifying challenge for Alice and her band of survivors. They're an especially hardy kind of zombie, created as a bioweapon by Umbrella Corporation at its secret lab, Umbrella Prime.
The Executioners are known for their towering physique — much taller and stronger than the regular undead, with a massive ax used to cleave their way through survivors. Nasty. Created especially for international buyers before the T-Virus outbreak, these bioweapons were set free by the Red Queen A.I. with one goal: to wipe out humanity.
These hooded bad boys are clearly inspired by Pyramid Head from the "Silent Hill" series, with their hidden faces and penchant for melee weapons. An Executioner attacks the Prison in "Afterlife" and is dispatched thanks to a team effort between Alice and Claire Redfield (Ali Larter). Then, a pair of Executioners are encountered during the NYC simulation in "Resident Evil: Retribution." Again, it takes a team up to kill them off, with Alice and Ada Wong blowing up a taxicab in order to take them out.
These monsters were deliberately created in the lab — presumably using human hosts for their mutations. Another example of Umbrella Corporation's disgusting lack of compassion for human life.
7. Enhanced Undead (Resident Evil: Extinction)
How do you make zombies even more of a menace? Turn them into Enhanced Undead!
Created by Dr. Isaacs (Iain Glen) in "Resident Evil: Extinction," the Enhanced Undead are the result of Umbrella's experimentation to domesticate the undead zombie hordes created by the T-Virus. Essentially, he wanted to control the undead created by Umbrella Corporation to use as a form of slave labor ... all highly ethical research, of course. Isaacs developed a compound that he created from Alice's blood and injected it into numerous undead test subjects. The result? They showed increased intelligence and child-like problem-solving skills. Not exactly Einstein, but a huge leap from their cannibalistic, undead form.
Unfortunately, their increased intelligence didn't last, but the Enhanced Undead did retain their strength and the ability to run after their prey.
Those obviously weren't the improvements Isaacs was hoping for, but he was able to use them to hunt Alice and Claire Redfield — unleashing a horde of Enhanced Undead upon them. Stronger, tougher, and harder to kill, they proved quite the challenge for the unfortunate group of survivors.
The Enhanced Undead are clearly more of a threat than the regular undead and give "Resident Evil" an in-universe explanation for moving away from the Romero-esque shuffling zombies of the original movies.
6. Cerberus (Resident Evil)
Man's best friend? Not exactly. The Cerberus monsters were accidentally created in "Resident Evil" during the T-Virus outbreak in The Hive. These security guard dogs were exposed to the T-Virus and underwent rapid mutations, causing their fur and skin to fall off, exposing their flesh and organs and giving them their uniquely hideous look. Rapidly deteriorating much like the undead, the Cerberus are essentially zombified dogs.
Unfortunately, they don't exactly shuffle like their human counterparts.
Cerberus specimens retain their physical ability, as we see when they attack Alice during the first movie. Becoming hugely aggressive and craving human flesh, the dogs are dangerous creatures to encounter, running and pouncing on their prey with ease. But in later films, they become even worse.
During the global T-Virus pandemic, the dogs are further enhanced and turned into fully functioning bioweapons by Umbrella Corporation. Sporting further mutations, the Cerberus monsters are able to split their heads vertically — unveiling a gruesome maw filled with fangs and tendrils.
Certainly not good boys ... and you definitely wouldn't want to pet them.
These further mutated Cerberus' were seen in "Resident Evil: Afterlife" with Albert Wesker (Shawn Roberts) keeping a pair of them as his personal pets. In "Resident Evil: The Final Chapter," a large pack of them was used to guard the entrance to The Hive.
5. Uber Licker (Resident Evil: Retribution)
If you thought the Lickers were horrific enough, you might want to brace yourself. Uber Lickers made their grisly debut in "Resident Evil: Retribution" as part of the Red Queen's experiments in Umbrella Prime — the corporation's secret research facility.
Uber Lickers are a significant "improvement" on the original Lickers, making them far more deadly. Essentially, these are much larger beasts, with a size roughly equal to a small house. They're also far scarier, with two tongues, no lower mandible, and a much creepier design. They possess much of the same strengths as the original Lickers — increased strength and hunting abilities among them. But they also have the same weaknesses, tracking their prey via sounds and smells due to their lack of eyes.
Additionally, the Uber Licker is able to encase its prey in organic cocoons to devour later. Yum.
A giant Licker is seen in "Retribution" during Alice's assault on Umbrella Prime, where it ambushes the survivors as they head for the exit. This impressive specimen captures and kills off several of the group until Alice is able to destroy the monster with a belt of grenades. Still, it puts up quite a fight, and you definitely wouldn't want to take on several of these bad boys at the same time.
4. Bloodshot (Resident Evil: The Final Chapter)
One of the lesser-seen mutants of "Resident Evil," the Bloodshot was spotted in "Resident Evil: The Final Chapter" after Alice, Claire, and a handful of survivors break into The Hive.
Alice and Michael are plunged into an abandoned laboratory after a trap door is activated beneath them ... leading to their encounter with Bloodshot. This humanoid bioweapon is another variant of the undead, thought to have been created by injecting an undead human with a modified strain of the original T-Virus.
The result is a hulking, brutally strong mutant with an insatiable bloodlust.
The Bloodshot is insanely strong and able to trample or tear apart its victims with relative ease. It also has a powerful jaw it can use to crush its prey — devouring Michael's head in an instant. But the monster does have a couple of weaknesses. Notably, it's only able to see in infra-red, allowing Alice to blind the beast with her flashlight. Its other weak spot? The soft flesh beneath its lower jaw is the perfect spot to lodge a sharp weapon — exactly what Alice does when she stabs the Bloodshot in the head, plunging a blade into its chin to kill it.
Only one Bloodshot was seen throughout the movies, but its horrific maw and lust for flesh make it one of the scariest monsters of the franchise.
3. Lisa Trevor (Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City)
Not exactly a creature but a monster nonetheless, Lisa Trevor is ... something else.
Originally a young orphan at the Raccoon City Orphanage, Lisa appeared in "Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City." One of the creepier additions to "Resident Evil" lore, she ended up as a test subject in an illegal bioweapon trial, held captive by Umbrella Corporation and injected with the Progenitor Virus. Surviving the initial virus, she was subjected to further experiments that gave her superhuman strength and durability ... at the expense of her mental and cognitive abilities.
She's first seen by a young Claire Redfield, who's scared by Lisa's monstrous visage and ultimately runs away from Raccoon City. But Lisa appears again years later, aiding Claire and Chris as they try to escape the horrors of Spencer Mansion.
Transformed from an innocent young girl into a genetically-engineered abomination, Lisa Trevor now wears the faces of her victims in a horrific display of her power. Although she ultimately aids our heroes in their escape, she remains one of the more horrific parts of the "Resident Evil" reboot.
2. Nemesis (Resident Evil: Apocalypse)
That's right — it's the return of Nemesis, the iconic video game character from "Resident Evil 3: Nemesis." But this time, he's a bit ... different.
Nemesis began life as Matt Addison — an environmental activist crusading against Umbrella in an attempt to expose its illegal genetic research. Disguised as a police officer, he infiltrated Raccoon City while searching for his sister, Lisa, who had disappeared. Searching the Arklay Mansion — the secret site of a hidden entrance to The Hive — he was captured and ultimately crossed paths with Alice, helping her escape the lockdown during "Resident Evil."
Unfortunately, the pair were captured at the end of the film, with Matt inducted into the Nemesis program after he was exposed to the T-Virus by an infected Licker wound. Warped by the T-Virus as well as Umbrella's experimentations, he became the first Nemesis — an augmented bioweapon with cybernetic implants that was controlled to obey every order from Umbrella.
The monster's horrific visage is legendary, with exposed teeth and a highly mutated, though humanoid, form. Its relentless tracking is due to Umbrella Corporation's programming, but the Nemesis also possesses superhuman strength, immunity to gunfire, as well as an impressive arsenal of a rail gun and rocket launcher. Because why not.
1. Dr. Isaacs Tyrant (Resident Evil: Extinction)
Throughout "Resident Evil: Afterlife" and its sequel, "Resident Evil: Extinction," Dr. Isaacs is built up as the big bad guy, experimenting on the undead and trying to further Umbrella Corporation's highly illegal research.
But that would soon be his undoing...
During the events of "Extinction," the sinister doctor is infected after being bitten by one of his newly created Enhanced Undead. Dosing himself with the antivirus, Isaacs is determined not to succumb to the infection ... but it's too late. Umbrella orders his superior, Alexander Slater (Matthew Marsden) to eliminate him, but Isaacs has already begun to mutate, turning into a tentacled and truly horrific tyrant in the process.
Thanks to his heavy dose of the T-Virus antivirus, Isaacs retains his intelligence while also possessing the brute strength and durability of the regular undead. Sealed into the lower levels of The Hive, he goes on a vast killing spree, slaughtering his former colleagues while asserting his dominance as he claims, "I am the future."
Isaacs isn't just a truly horrific monster — he's a tyrant in every meaning of the word, with a sinister backstory and an even scarier mutation than most. His genius intellect and hideous appearance are what make this monster the scariest of all. After all, he knows exactly what he's doing.