Zach Cregger's Resident Evil reboot opens across North America on September 18, and the early tracking numbers suggest the eighth film in this franchise is about to rewrite its own history books.

According to Variety's report, cited by Koimoi, the film is expected to earn somewhere between $40 million and $50 million domestically over its opening weekend. If word of mouth holds, that number could climb past $50 million and edge toward $60 million. Either way, it puts Resident Evil on course to open at number one in North America.

That matters because the current franchise record has stood for a long time. Resident Evil: Afterlife has held the title of the series' biggest opening weekend since 2010, a run of 16 years. Cregger's film looks set to end it comfortably, which is no small thing for a horror franchise that's been through multiple actors, timelines and directors since it first hit screens.

Why the buzz is real this time

Part of the excitement traces back to Cregger himself, who has built a reputation as a director people trust to deliver on horror. The film has backed that trust up early, debuting at 97% on Rotten Tomatoes, a number that tends to move ticket buyers on a Thursday night before a wide release.

The story is set during a timeline that runs parallel to Resident Evil 2, but pushed into a modern-day setting. It follows Bryan, played by Austin Abrams, a medical courier who gets caught in a viral outbreak of infected creatures while making a delivery through Raccoon City. It's a smaller, more grounded entry point than some of the franchise's earlier globe-trotting instalments, and that might be exactly why it's tracking so well.

The global number to watch

Beyond North America, media reports tracking the release suggest a worldwide opening weekend somewhere between $80 million and $100 million. That range would make this the franchise's strongest launch globally as well as domestically, assuming the film holds up once reviews from ordinary audiences start coming in over the weekend.

None of these numbers are final, obviously. Tracking estimates move, and horror openings can swing hard depending on how the first Friday night plays out. But a 97% critical score walking into release weekend is not nothing, and neither is a 16-year record sitting there waiting to be broken.

The real test comes once the Friday numbers land. If Resident Evil clears $50 million domestically, it puts the reboot on a very different trajectory than anything this franchise has managed before, and gives Cregger a horror hit to match his growing reputation.