Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on September 2010

image.net

If flesh-eating zombies ever take over the world, we know who to call: Milla Jovovich. The 34-year-old actress has been battling the undead for the past eight years in the four Resident Evil movies, the latest of which, Resident Evil Afterlife 3D, had its world premiere in Japan earlier this month (where it is titled Biohazard Afterlife). “The zombies are almost part of the family now,” Jovovich (above center) joked during a recent visit with two of her co-stars, a heavily pregnant Ali Larter (of Heroes fame) and British actor Wentworth Miller (Prison Break).

Resident Evil debuted as a game for Sony’s PlayStation in 1996. Since then, it’s become a media franchise encompassing a video and PC game series, comic books, novellas, action figures and, of course, four films. The movies deal with the desperate struggle of a small band of humans to battle a mutant virus accidentally unleashed by the sinister Umbrella Corp. Jovovich plays Alice, a former Umbrella security agent and one of the few survivors of the outbreak. As the virus threatens to turn every human into a zombie, Alice must kick butt and elude Umbrella goons in her quest for justice and salvation.

Tokyoites will be amused with the latest film, which has hordes of zombies overrunning Shibuya crossing (no salaryman jokes, please). “It was a great pleasure to destroy Tokyo. Biohazard belongs in Japan,” said Jovovich, who was born in Kiev and moved to California with her family when she was five. All four of the Resident Evil films have been produced by her husband, Paul W S Anderson. “These movies are so much fun. We’re all like big kids at an amusement park with monsters and explosions,” she said.

Afterlife was filmed in 3D, which was an extra challenge for the actors, said Larter, 34. “The fight scenes have to be filmed differently. When you do a 2D movie, you throw a punch and there is an obvious gap between your fist and someone’s face. You can’t get away with that in 3D. The punches have to connect. So it helped us get more in character. As much as 3D immerses the audience, it immerses actors as well.”

Miller, 38, said it is important for actors to embrace the latest technology, but emphasized that the story comes first. “There has to be a balance. The characters have to be fully believable people whom you can get behind.”

Jovovich said she never dreamed the franchise would be so popular. “We made this European horror movie eight years ago and nobody expected much. Women action heroes weren’t big drawing cards at the box office then. But the fan base grew, and each movie has been built on inspiration and passion. I think back to when I used to watch sci-fi and fantasy movies when I was growing up, and it was my dream to be a superhero. The Resident Evil franchise has made my dream come true.”

While in Tokyo, Jovovich took time out from her movie PR duties to launch her clothing line, Capsule Collection by Milla, at Matsuya department store in Ginza. “I love Tokyo and its fashions,” she said. “I’ve been coming here for fashion or movies since I was 14. If you don’t mind me doing a little product placement, I never miss a chance to have teppanyaki at Hama.”

Chris Betros is the editor of Japan Today (www.japantoday.com).