Bintang Resident Evil Requiem: Leon Fever, Momen Penting Karakter, dan Nasihat Kiamat | IGN Fall Fan Fest 2026

Resident Evil has always been huge with gamers, but Resident Evil Requiem is the biggest-selling installment yet. For Fall Fan Fest 2026, IGN spoke to the actors behind Grace Ashcroft and Leon S. Kennedy, Angela Sant'Albano and Nick Apostolides, about their experiences creating their characters and what they've made of the enthusiastic, and sometimes feral, fan reaction since launch.

"Nick has been wonderful. He's been like a big brother in a way, kind of guiding me through it all," says Sant'Albano of taking her first step into the world of Resident Evil.

"It was hard to sum up what those guys were about to get into," said Apostolides of his role as a series veteran, having starred in the remakes of Resident Evil 2 and 4 and Netflix's Resident Evil: Infinite Darkness.

"I knew because of my history with the franchise. I'd already done three projects with it, and I had an intimate understanding of the fanbase and how excited and passionate they are. So I was just secretly excited for these guys," he said. "I think I just tried to help everyone understand the grim universe that they were stepping into, because these games are fun, they're campy at times, and yes, they're about zombies and surviving and the apocalypse, but they also have such grounded reality to them. They center around real human stories, and so: not psyching them out, but getting them prepared for what they're about to experience."

Part of what makes Resident Evil Requiem such a standout for the series are the characters of Grace, a young woman suddenly facing not just grief, but monsters and the contrast with an older, wiser, veteran of the world, Leon. Apostolides picked out the scene that, for him, really encapsulated the version of Leon that we see in Resident Evil Requiem.

"There was a scene that really reinforced what Leon is all about. When he's in the garbage dump area with Grace. Grace is sitting by his side, and then he gets up, and Grace asks him, 'You're so sick; why do you keep going? You're not going to make it.' And he just says a few select keywords here: 'I couldn't make a difference back then. But I'm here now, and this is my chance to make a difference.' And that's what he's all about. That's his spine, that's his DNA; he just wants to do the right thing and help those who can't help themselves. He's always been that guy, and even facing the end possibly, he's still doing that."

For Sant'Albano, the scene that really stood out to her from Grace's story was is her reaction to the death of her mother. "You understand the sort of trauma that she went through. Grace, I think from from birth, is introverted and a little uncomfortable with human contact and all that good stuff. I think from seeing her mother pass away in such a traumatic way, it sort of exacerbated all everything for her," she said.

"And then the other one, which made me understand Grace's journey and the courage that she had to find, was actually when Emily died, because you understood, first of all, the guilt that Grace had. Because I think there's a line where she literally says again, 'This is how I've done this again. This is all my fault.' And you understand this burden and this guilt that she's carried her whole life.

"That feeling that she let her mom down, and now she's letting this other person she's really grown to love and care about down. But I also think it made it very clear to me of where I had to get to in terms of Grace's journey. She has to stand up for someone else, and even though she's not good at standing up for herself, she has to find that bravery."

The fanbase turned out to be especially excited for Leon S. Kennedy this time around. He's always been an attractive male lead, but something about the more mature, slightly grizzled version of him that appeared in Requiem sent certain corners of the internet feral, complete with Instagram thirst traps.

"You know, it's funny, I was kind of expecting the status quo. He was always popular. He's a great-looking character. He stands for such good in the world, but it was a whole different level of… What's the word I'm looking for?"

"Fever?" suggests Sant'Albano.

"Okay, it was a whole different level of Leon fever that I was not expecting. It was dialed up to, like, a 12. And I thought it was going to be, like, a nine, so we'll say that."

One of the big obsessions after the game was released is that one version of Leon was wearing a wedding ring, but the game didn't reveal who the lucky Mrs. S. Kennedy was. Both stars say they get asked all the time by fans.

"They're asking me as if I know," says Apostolides. "I usually just say he's married to you, the fans."

After the positive reaction to the game and renewed interest, even outside the world of games, thanks to the new movie, what is it about the series that gives it a longevity beyond so many other horror games and zombie stories?

"I feel like Capcom is just dialed in," says Apostolides. "Number one, I think they really, really do listen to the fans. They also know what they're doing. They're extremely talented. And that's what separates the franchises from the ones that survive all these years and the ones that kind of flutter out.

"I think it's also a perfect recipe for these projects and these games, where, yes, it's about zombies, killing zombies, stopping world domination from evil corporations, but it's also centered around human stories that — the fans get so attached to these characters, and they feel like they're surviving a huge obstacle together with their friends, with the people that they watch, with the characters. And there's — I think there's a beautiful, like, metaphor to life of just getting through adversity."

"For me, like, as an actor, when I first read the script, I just felt that the human story is what made the game so addictive," adds Sant'Albano. "And with Leon, just the fact that they managed to create such a beloved character so early on. It's really a testament to the fans of, you know, staying with the game and watching Leon grow older and meet new characters and see where life takes him. But I think creating complex characters like Grace, that's just so delicious for a gamer or for anyone, frankly, in any medium, is to have a really complex character that they can observe."

Resident Evil is also finding a new audience thanks to the new movie adaptation from horror director Zach Cregger, so what advice would they have for its unlucky hero, Bryan, as Resident Evil survivors?

"I'd probably say, find your version of Leon," says Sant'Albano. "Find your version of Leon, and try and find more than one bullet if you can, probably."

"Find a huge gun," adds Apostolides with a smile.

Sant'Albano is currently playing Hermia in A Midsummer Night's Dream (with added rave culture) at the Chichester Festival Theatre, while also working on adding her vocal talents to the King Arthur-meets-modern-day-apocalypse action-RPG Tides of Annihilation as hero Gwendolyn. Apostolides has a packed calendar too: he just did his first anime dub for Ghost in the Shell, is working on indie action-adventure RPG Emberville, and is developing his own game with his brother, a backyard-type zombie beat 'em up game inspired by his father. During the interview, he pitched an unusual role to Sant'Albano.

"You might have to play a zombie animal."

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