In the early 2000s, rapper Snoop Dogg nearly joined the cast of the lowest-rated film in the popular Resident Evil movie series.

Video game adaptations are quite popular nowadays, but without a doubt, this trend was normalized by the Resident Evil movie series. The series kicked off with the release of 2002’s Resident Evil and ended with 2017’s Resident Evil: The Final Chapter. The franchise was later rebooted but unfortunately, it was not well-received by the fans.

Resident Evil: Apocalypse was the second movie in the series (Image via Constantin Film)

The Resident Evil movie series is a great example of how video games are butchered when adapted into a different medium. The films were average and yet, managed to become the highest-grossing film series based on a video game at one point. The films featured some heavy hitters from Hollywood but no one was as influential as this one musician who almost joined the cast of 2004’s Resident Evil: Apocalypse.

Snoop Dogg was all set to join the cast of Resident Evil: Apocalypse

Snoop Dogg appeared in various films in the 2000s (Credits: Bruce Baker via Wikimedia Commons, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0)

Popular rapper Snoop Dogg was well-known for making cameos in Hollywood films in the early 2000s. When the development of 2004’s Resident Evil: Apocalypse began, there were rumors that Snoop Dogg would appear in the movie as “Daddy Prime.” Unfortunately, the cameo never happened and the reason was also not revealed.

It was not officially revealed what part Snoop Dogg was initially planning to play, however, the movie’s DVD audio commentary later revealed that he was going to play L.J. Wade, a role which was then rewritten for actor Mike Epps. The cameo would’ve been exciting but it may have damaged the rapper’s reputation since the movie went on to become the lowest-rated film in the Resident Evil series.

The Resident Evil movie series was a flop

Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City was also a terrible adaptation (Image via Constantin Film)

In the late 1990s, the Resident Evil video game series became a popular hit around the world. Constantin Film then acquired the live-action film rights to the Resident Evil franchise and the first film of the series, Resident Evil, was released in 2002.

The film was bombed with negative reviews, but its commercial success convinced the creators that they must continue making the movies. Five more movies were then released between 2004 and 2017: Resident Evil: Apocalypse, Resident Evil: Extinction, Resident Evil: Afterlife, Resident Evil: Retribution, and Resident Evil: The Final Chapter.

In 2021, Constantin Film tried to reboot the franchise with the release of Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City but just like its predecessors, it received mixed reviews from critics. Now, once again, Netflix has stepped in to save the franchise but things are not looking good.

The franchise has mostly received negative reviews from critics as well as fans, however, Business Insider has revealed that the franchise has managed to gross over $1.2 billion. At one point, it was the highest-grossing film series based on a video game and the highest-grossing horror film series. Even today, it is the highest-grossing zombie film series and also holds the record for the most live-action film adaptations of a video game.