Biggest Unanswered Questions In Netflix's Resident Evil Season 1
The "Resident Evil" franchise is known for its apocalyptic level of horror and television's new take on the popular series is no different. But whereas the chaos spreads gradually throughout the world in the video games and the Paul W.S. Anderson films, Netflix thrusts the audience into the future end of days where the remnants of civilization try to survive in lands overrun by roaming hordes of monsters.
The latest show builds upon the vast mythology firmly established decades ago by one of the top game series within the survival horror genre. At the same time, the series adds new characters in the form of Jade and Billie, along with twists on familiar faces like Albert Wesker. It's a tale with a style entirely of its own that includes a respectable number of nods to the original source material. The streaming service certainly left the door wide open for more seasons, so here are some of the mysteries left unanswered for future episodes, and even some throwbacks to the prior stories of the famed interactive media brand and horror institution.
The mystery of the mothers
Sisters Jade and Billie Wesker are the central figures of the "Resident Evil" series; the story progresses to show their relationship deteriorate from a close friendship to bitter hatred. Although it is clear from the beginning of the show that Albert Wesker is their father, not much is known about the mothers of the main characters.
At her new school, Billie awkwardly tries to have a conversation with her soon-to-be bully and reveals that she and her sister were born from separate egg donors, making them twin half-sisters. Later on, the two discover more about their unusual births when Albert states that the names of their mothers are Tara Sutton and Alex Shaum and they were born at the University of California San Francisco School of Medicine.
Afterward, no further background information is given about Tara or Alex or the circumstances of the twins' births. And since Albert turns out to be a clone, it is quite possible that he lied to his daughters either to protect them or to hide his actions in order to avoid upsetting them. Especially when Albert sacrifices himself to save the girls, there is no doubt he loves the two of them. On the other hand, the way their dad uses them for their blood without telling them shows that he's capable of some rather disturbing behavior as well.
Pandemic of more than just zombies
The events of the first season of "Resident Evil" begin in 2022, which is when the T-Virus pandemic breaks out and spreads throughout the globe. Fourteen years later, the population has been decimated to only 15 million people, compared to 6 billion mutated monsters. The show addresses how the deadly virus transforms people into zombies called Zeros through bite attacks. In addition to the Zeros, there is a plethora of other creatures that are often far larger and more terrifying, such as gigantic spiders, colossal worms, and the franchise's familiar Lickers.
It can be assumed that the T-Virus simply spreads to a variety of animals, but that is not clearly explained. In fact, whenever the series spells out the origins of mutated beasts, they usually turn out to be the result of direct manipulation from scientists, as is the case for the gargantuan crocodile let loose at the end of the season.
Fortunately, showrunner Andrew Dabb provided some insight to help answer these types of questions. At a press event at Netflix's headquarters, he said, "The games are our backstory. Everything that happens in the games exists in this world" (via EW). The detailed mythology of the eight "Resident Evil" video games includes a more in-depth explanation as to how the T-Virus has several strains that infect all kinds of life, as well as mutations that create monsters like the Lickers from already-zombified humans. So perhaps we already have an idea where those giant zombie spiders came from.
The true history of the original Raccoon City
Netflix's "Resident Evil" introduces viewers to New Raccoon City in South Africa where Albert Wesker has come to live with his daughters, Billie and Jade. The sisters begin to grow suspicious of their father's secretive work on behalf of the Umbrella Corporation, and their investigations eventually uncover horrific details about the fate of the original Raccoon City in the U.S.
First, journalist Angel Rubio reveals the truth to the sisters that Raccoon City was not destroyed by a gas leak or massive fire, as was reported in the media. Instead, the initial location was purposefully annihilated with a nuclear explosion carried out by the U.S. military and Umbrella in order to cover up the fact that thousands had been infected by the T-Virus. The girls also discover a box marked with the date of the incident in 1998 that contains several video recordings, but they only watch one brief and horrifying scene of a mutated woman with an eye on her back.
The show gives no further details regarding the terrible fate of the initial city, and viewers can turn to the video games if they want to learn more. The first three installments of the franchise chronicle how even highly trained operatives from S.T.A.R.S. are unable to stop the evil actions of the immensely powerful corporation at the Spencer Mansion before their vile experiments overwhelm the nearby Raccoon City, leading to its destruction.
The disturbing video of the mutated woman
In much of the 2022 portion of "Resident Evil" Season 1, Jade and Billie Wesker attempt to uncover the truth about their father, their mothers, and the Umbrella Corporation. Through a series of puzzles reminiscent of those commonly featured in the video games, the twins reveal Albert Wesker's secret laboratory underneath their home and dare to venture within.
Once below, the sisters make a few disturbing discoveries, like the creepy fact that Albert is storing vials of their blood. Even worse, the two find a box filled with video recordings from Raccoon City in 1998, and they make the mistake of watching one of them. The girls see an individual who appears to be their father walking into a dilapidated jail cell with an armed soldier. After telling his subordinate to not hesitate to fire on the prisoner, Wesker calls out the name Lisa. The shackled creature that emerges is absolutely horrifying; not only is she wearing a mask of human faces sewn together, but she also has tumorous growths swelling on her back, including a gigantic eye. Wesker injects Lisa with something and the brief segment ends.
Lisa does not make another appearance for the rest of the season. On the other hand, fans of the video games would know that this is Lisa Trevor, the poor soul taken captive by Oswell E. Spencer, the founder of the Umbrella Corporation. Over several tortuous years, the depraved doctor uses Lisa as a test subject for various bioweapons.
Similarities between Netflix's Albert Wesker and the video game villain
Albert Wesker in Netflix's "Resident Evil" might be a head-scratcher for longtime fans of the franchise. Not only has the character not been known as a fatherly figure in previous incarnations, but following the events seen in the fifth installment of the video games, Albert should be extremely dead. However, the show makes use of a theme found both in interactive and cinematic "Resident Evil" media — the process of cloning major characters.
A brief bit of backstory from 2005 depicts the original Albert Wesker sending clones of himself to carry out secret projects in the Arklay Mountains at an unauthorized Umbrella lab. Once the corporation discovers his whereabouts, they send an armed team to hunt him down, but he manages to escape their clutches.
Antagonist Evelyn Marcus states that the original Albert Wesker was incinerated in a volcano. In "Resident Evil 5," the villain perishes in a similar manner after he was taken out in West Africa by hero and former S.T.A.R.S. member, Chris Redfield in 2009.
Bea's real father
Very early on in the first season of "Resident Evil," Jade's daughter Bea is introduced in the future timeline, yet little is revealed about the child's background during the years leading up to 2036. Once it becomes clear that Jade's lover Arjun is only a caring stepfather to Bea, the question arises as to who her real father is.
What is known about Bea's birth is addressed when Billie confronts Jade as the new leader of Umbrella. Jade is pregnant with her daughter four years after the events seen in New Raccoon City when she was 18 years old; that makes Bea 10. Plus, at one point Billie offers a comment about her sister's busted front teeth, which The Cinemaholic theorizes could mean that the father was an abusive partner. The site also points out that at the end of the season, Billie mentions two names — Kim and Hiroki — who were close to Jade and later killed. Although the two are potentially prominent characters in the show, neither are major parts of the video game storyline, leaving the possibility that one of them could be Bea's dad.
The interesting interaction between Bea and the colossal crocodile
In the final episode of "Resident Evil" Season 1, the origins of Jade' daughter Bea grow increasingly mysterious, and for reasons other than the identity of her biological father. When the University unleashes their secret weapon — a gargantuan, mutated lizard — upon the Umbrella forces, the creature wreaks havoc and nearly puts an end to Billie's diabolical plot.
However, the plan nearly backfires when Bea leaves the ship to search for her mother and is confronted by the terrifying beast. Yet just when the crocodile is about to make a tiny meal out of the child, Bea shocks Billie by subduing the beast without any effort. This means there is certainly more to the genetics of the child than meets the eye, though it is unclear if Bea has been modified on purpose or whether Bea's scientist mother had anything to do with the changes apparently made to her daughter.
The fate of Evelyn
In 2036, Evelyn Marcus is only half-alive in the last episode of "Resident Evil" Season 1 as the villain has become a puppet filled with 87 different drugs so that Billie can control her entirely. Whether what she's experiencing can be considered a life is debatable, but Evelyn is still technically breathing, and a glimpse of her former self appears for a brief moment when she is not completely drugged up.
Unfortunately for the antagonist, Evelyn is only able to speak with Billie for a moment before she is abandoned by all the Umbrella personnel following the assault of a horde of zombies. Evelyn's final scene of the season as she fails miserably to plead for her life makes it seem very possible that she's ripped apart by the marauding Zeroes. However, it seems unlikely that such a pivotal figure would be taken out so early in the series, especially since her demise is never actually shown on screen.
What about the creature in the water tank?
On more than one occasion, "Resident Evil" alludes to a clawed monster in a water tank who will most likely appear to terrorize humanity in the second season. The creature is seen beginning to crawl out of the rubble of the destroyed Umbrella Corporation facility, so it definitely survived the explosion and has been set free.
Thankfully, showrunner Andrew Dabb has provided more juicy details and confirmed that the terrifying monster is journalist Angel Rubio. He explained to Decider, "Our journalist character has been injected with a huge amount of T-Virus. As fans of the games know, when that happens, it's never great. Like, it never happens and you're like, 'Oh, suddenly my sinuses are cleared up, but I'm fine. So, it's not a specific character from the games, but it's certainly a type of character, let's put it that way. It falls into kind of the Tyrant category."
The circumstances of Bert's death
The climactic finale of "Resident Evil," Season 1 ends with the Bert Wesker clone escaping with Jade and Billie from the Umbrella Corporation facility in 2022. However, in the future scenes of 2036, Billie names Bert — along with their father and Jade's former boyfriend, Simon — as people who got close to her sister and were killed because of it.
So, Bert will perish at some point, but it is not clear when exactly that will happen. As their new father figure, Bert's demise will likely be heartbreaking for the sisters, especially Jade, who just recently lost Albert. On the other hand, Billie's compassion and empathy might have completely eroded after the traumatic night at Umbrella. Fourteen years in the future, Jade exclaims that night was the worst of her life and when she truly lost her sister. Therefore, it would make sense if Billie's relationships with both Bert and Jade deteriorate rapidly.
When will the trio split up?
Since the two sisters are fierce enemies throughout the future scenes of 2036 in "Resident Evil," it is clear that Jade, Billie, and Bert will not be together for long after they flee from the Umbrella Corporation. But the trio appear to still be on somewhat decent terms at the end of the first season, leaving some uncertainty as to when they will break up and how it will play out.
In the finale, Billie's bite infects Simon with the T-Virus, leading his mother, Evelyn Marcus, to murder him before he has the chance to transform into a monster. The death of her boyfriend crushes Jade and it is clear that her bond with her sister is already showing severe cracks. The rift might cause one of them to split from the small group. It is also possible that Bert's future demise will be the real breaking point for them all.
The fate of Jade and Arjun
Season 1 of "Resident Evil" ends tragically for the lovers Jade and Arjun as the latter is left on the coast with a broken leg because Jade has to find her daughter who is in imminent danger. Due to his immobility, it is unclear whether Arjun survives the ordeal, although it is likely that he will not just succumb from the injury alone. The University vessel is still fairly close to the shore and may return to save their beloved crew members.
Similarly, Billie shoots Jade in the stomach and leaves her for dead while kidnapping Bea. As the chief protagonist of the series, Jade will probably survive the wound — or, at least that's what we can expect based on what usually happens when the main character gets shot a TV show. It would not be surprising if Season 2 begins with the hero seeking both her daughter and revenge against her sister for her many grievous wrongs.