Austin Abrams is playing the lead in two big movies at once, and he cannot decide which one wore him down more. His survival thriller Whalefall, directed by Barbarian collaborator Brian Duffield, arrives Oct. 16, following his breakout turn as the medical courier Bryan in Zach Cregger’s Resident Evil reboot. Abrams admits the roles blur together.
He admits the two sections are difficult to distinguish. Resident Evil brought more laughs, yet he refuses to claim which of the two was tougher to put together. Either way, he considers both very demanding.
The Courier’s Early Mistakes
The film starts with Bryan managing a delivery and a phone call from his girlfriend Michelle, who informs him she is pregnant. He promises to be home in 20 minutes for a face-to-face talk before accepting a distant job that sends him to Raccoon City General Hospital. The call takes a turn for the worse as Bryan argues that they should keep things exactly as they are.
Bryan has a friend he is going to stay with, and he is giving Michelle some time to think things over, which is what she tells him before she goes. The conversation ends early because the signal cuts out, and that is the first sign of trouble.
A woman in a sundress is hit by Bryan’s vehicle. He helps the bloodied victim into his car, but a cop pulls him over and takes responsibility. The officer’s SUV as it flips over in front of him, slowly confirming what viewers have likely already suspected: she is infected. Bryan is now caught up in the franchise’s inciting t-virus outbreak.
The Farmhouse and the Girl
When Michelle calls back on the officer’s gun to shoot the rabid sundress woman and an infected guard dog at a nearby farm. He then makes his way inside the farmhouse to refuel, reload and call Michelle from the farmer’s landline, she reaches Bryan, who cannot answer. He has just killed the infected farmer and severed the head of the reanimated pedestrian.
Bryan sees the farmer and the woman join together into one terrifying shape, which gives him no rest as he runs from it. He presses onward on foot into a passage crowded with old vehicles, where a trailer obstructs his way. Climbing inside, he forces his way out through the rear of the trailer.
He comes upon a young girl there and tries to aid her, unaware that she is already turning. As her condition worsens, she turns on Bryan and sinks her teeth into his arm, and he puts her down.
The Umbrella Corporation and the Hospital
Two representatives of the Umbrella Corporation reveal that a breach within their own laboratory set off the epidemic. They further reveal that Bryan was assigned to get the “neutralizing base” to Umbrella researchers at Raccoon City General in order to finish an antidote. Before he reaches the hospital, Bryan survives a number of close calls.
He stands in the parking garage, watching an infection spread across his body, and he knows he is running out of time. He gathers his thoughts and records a voice message for Michelle, apologizing for how he handled the pregnancy news before, and telling her that she’d love nothing more than to start a family together. The recording caps with the most heart-wrenching line possible: “I think you’d be an amazing mom.
Before the final lab on the 28th floor, Bryan survives a series of close calls. He reaches the facility’s room just in time to deliver the key ingredient for the cure, but the Umbrella scientists botch their attempt to complete the mixture. Bryan cannot hold out until the cure is ready, and he falls victim to the infection. He kills the scientists one by one, turning into his own version of the monster that has been pursuing him since it first appeared at the farmhouse.
The Ending That Rewrites the Monster
The film ends with the recognition that what viewers have been watching is the origin story of a Resident Evil monster. Cregger reinforces the idea that change comes for us all, whether we are ready for it or not.
The movie makes a daring move, saving the twist for the finish of a costly, crowd-pleasing action picture. The ending catches viewers off guard. A creature that gamers usually mow down without a second thought now has a face — Bryan’s — and a personal history, connected to a failing relationship and a viral outbreak.
The Two Films Back to Back
Duffield directs Whalefall, a film in which Abrams plays Jay, a diver who gets swallowed whole by a sperm whale, while Bryan is a courier stuck in the middle of a zombie virus outbreak. The two actors are put through a different kind of test by the project, with Abrams playing the diver and Bryan the courier. The film is due out Oct. 16.
Abrams has two major studio releases coming out back-to-back, which makes him a leading figure in both. He has been acting since he was 13, and he says he has no words to describe what it means to lead them both. He is just as unwilling to name which role gave him more trouble.
Cregger’s career took off with Weapons, the 2023 hit that marked his rise to become the top genre filmmaker working today. Abrams stayed with Cregger after the writer-director lost his initial cast due to strike-related scheduling problems. Abrams had other attractive opportunities he could have pursued, but he wanted to work with the filmmaker known for cutting to Justin Long singing his way down PCH to start the second act of Barbarian (2022).
The Weapons Connection
The impulse to catch Weapons proved extremely rewarding. Abrams delivered a standout performance as an unhoused junkie thief in the film. The critical and commercial hit went on to win an Oscar, with Amy Madigan receiving the best supporting actress award.
Cregger cast Abrams as the lead in his Resident Evil reboot, and the film has delivered the franchise’s most positive reviews along with its biggest opening weekend, generating $60 million across its first three days. Cregger may currently be the belle of the ball, but Abrams is clearly the belle of the fall.
A Line From Abrams
“I feel bad singling either one out as being harder to work on. They were both really challenging.”
Two big studio releases follow one another in quick succession for Abrams, who has been acting since he was 13. He is at a loss for words when describing what it means to lead them both, and he is equally reluctant to say which role put him through the wringer more.
| Film | Director | Abrams’ Role | Release Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Resident Evil | Zach Cregger | Bryan | Already released |
| Whalefall | Brian Duffield | Jay | Oct. 16 |
The final stretch of the film takes a bold approach by transforming Bryan from the courier into the very monster he had been pursuing. This is not merely a survival tale. It is a tragedy about a man who made a grave choice, and that choice returned to haunt him as a creature that gamers typically mow down without a second thought.
Source material: “‘Resident Evil’ Star Austin Abrams Breaks Down the “Risky and Gutsy” Ending,” The Hollywood Reporter.
Get the Notebook.
The day's best stories and every fresh verdict, in plain English, in your inbox by seven. One email a day, no more.