Summary
There are few video game series that celebrate women as often asResident Evil. The series began with two campaigns, one featured Chris and his partner Rebecca while the other focused on Jill and Barry. There is a good balance between male andfemale heroes in the series, and even the villain side gets celebrated every so often.
One such example would be the much-adored Lady Dimitrescu from the most recent entry in the series, but there are also many other characters of note from theResident Evilseries. Let’s rank them out to see who is the best of the best.
Updated July 05, 2025 by Mara Cowley:Resident Evil still reigns as one of Capcom’s most beloved series. They deliver fantastic games with every release, be it a new game or a remake. With news of a Resident Evil 9 and another remake in the works, fans are clamoring for a new or refurbished RE experience, and are hoping to see some legacy characters reprising their roles.
Undoubtedly one of the draws of the series is the characters. ManyResident Evil girlsare the most popular among the fanbase. To honor the fantastic Resident Evil girls, this article has been updated to highlight to include a few more entries of the many fantastic Resident Evil women from the large catalog of games.
One of theResident Evilspin-off titles,Resident Evil: Outbreakshowed an alternate scenario to the Raccoon City incident, following the stories of everyday characters such as Yoko Suzuki, as they try to survive and escape the T-virus outbreak.
Yoko works for Umbrella, hired there for an unknown position when she was a teenager, showing that even at a young age she must have held great promise and intelligence to be considered for a role. Her smarts are what help this otherwise quiet and unassuming girl survive, which also demonstrates resilience and hidden strength, as not many can boast that they survived the Raccoon City Incident.
Resident Evil 6was a somewhat divisive entry in the series, featuring a bigger focus on action gameplay and co-op over the survival horror that made the franchise so popular in the first place. But it wasn’t all bad, asRE6did gift players some strong female characters, such as Carla Radames.
Carla is much more than anAda Wong look-alike, as she is a brilliant and accomplished woman in her own right. She was responsible for the creation of the C-Virus and the company Neo-Umbrella. After her death at the hands of Ada, Neo Umbrella became defunct to show just how much of an important figure she was to the group.
The second episodicResident Evilgame to release followingResident Evil: Revelationsbrought back old characters such as Claire Redfield and Barry Burton while introducing a few new characters, such as Moira Burton, Natalia Korda, and Alex Wesker, who had thus far only been mentioned in a file within the Lost Nightmares DLC forResident Evil 5.
Not much is known of her origins, but Alex went on to make a name for herself after undergoing the Wesker Project. She was headhunted by Umbrella, which is a clear sign of her intellect. She became something other than human, seeking to transcend into something more. Although she was ultimately defeated, it is implied that Alex lives on in Natalia at the end ofRevelations 2.
When Albert himself approaches another character, that is definite proof of their worth. Originally in the lower ranks of Tricell’s pharmaceutical division, her partnership with Wesker elevated her to new heights, and she became a force to be reckoned with, gaining control of the company she was once a runt for, and controlling the mind-controlled Jill Valentine.
Inevitably double-crossed by Wesker, Excella transformed into amonstrous mass of flesh and tentaclesthat very almost cut Chris’s and Sheva’s mission short with her terrifying strength and speed.
The Reluctant Agent Became A Monster
Resident Evil Revelations
The critically acclaimed survival horror title takes players back to the events that took place between Resident Evil® 4 and Resident Evil® 5, revealing the truth about the T-Abyss virus. Resident Evil Revelations features series favorites Jill Valentine and Chris Redfield, plus their respective BSAA partners - Parker Luciani and Jessica Sherawat.The action begins on board a supposedly abandoned cruise ship, the ‘Queen Zenobia’, where horrors lurk around every corner, before players head for the mainland and the devastated city of Terragrigia. With limited ammo and weapons available, the race is on to survive the horror of Resident Evil Revelations.
One of the monstersJill will have the misfortune of running into is Rachel Foley, once an FBC agent, and now another victim of the t-Abyss virus. Her original mission was to investigate what had happened on the ship and ready it for disposal, ensuring her boss would not have anything to trace back to him.
In typicalResident Evilfashion, nothing ever goes according to plan, and the skilled agent becomes a monster Jill must face off against. Rachel’s tenure inResident Evil: Revelationswas short-lived but very memorable.
Infiltrating a remote Spanish village to rescue the President’s kidnapped daughter is a tall order, and Leon might not have been able to do it without the support of Ingrid Hunnigan. Though she only communicates with Leon periodically throughout the game to keep track of his progress and offer advice, she still acts as a key character for most of the game.
Though it is unlikely players will ever see Hunnigan return in a later title, the role she played inRE4willstay in the minds of players. Her intelligence and straightforward attitude shined in every conversation, and she even resisted Leon’s joking attempt to flirt with her.
Though most will remember the twisted Dr. Birkin or terrifying Mr. X when thinking aboutResident Evil 2villains, there is another equally deserving of praise, as she is a very underappreciated character. That is Annette Birkin, wife to William, mother to Sherry, and an accomplished scientist.
She cares about researching the effects the virus had on her husband first and foremost, even above the life of herself and even her child. But her character shows more complex depth here than a single-minded researcher, as she seems genuinely sad to abandon Sherry in her hour of need as she pursues her work. These nuances are really what make her shine as a character, and remind players that this villainous woman is just as human as they are.
Mad scientists are nothing new to the world ofRE, as they serve as the main antagonists in nearly every game, and Alexia Ashford stands out as one of the best with her calculating demeanor and her goals to rise as Queen of the entire world.
Created as a clone of Dr Alexander’s ancestor Veronica, Alexia was blessed with supreme intelligence that saw her graduate from a prestigious university at the age of 10 and join Umbrella as a virologist, her intellect on par with her colleagues even at such a young age. Her attention eventually shifted to experimenting with certain infamous viruses, resulting in a horrid creature known as Nosferatu, eventually infecting herself to become an even greater being.
21Moira Burton (Resident Evil: Revelations 2)
Grows And Matures Throughout The Game
Introduced in the spin-off titledRevelations 2,Moira acts as a side-kick to the franchise’s famous Claire Redfield, and eldest daughter to Barry Burton. An incident involving a gun and the injury of her younger sister Polly, a rift opened up between Moira and Barry, resulting in her rebelling against her father. At the urging of Claire, Moira joined TerraSave and coincidentally was at the party that acted as the catalyst for the rest of the game.
Though she acts as a typical surly teen at the beginning of the game, Moira’s arc that sees her grow and mature as the game progresses is what makes her such a special and enjoyable character. She even reconciles with her father in a genuinely touching scene at the game’s conclusion.
20Jessica Sherawat (Resident Evil: Revelations)
Behind Her Playful Demeanor Is A Calculating Triple Agent
A supposed member of the BSAA, Jessica debuts as Chris’s new partner as they are tasked to work with investigating Veltro. She always seems to have a very casual attitude towards her missions, heckling Chris on the exact depth of his relationship with Jill, but this could all be an elaborate distraction from the truth of her character.
Jessica is actually a triple agent, working for Tricell while masquerading as a BSAA agent, shooting Jill’s new partner Parker, and activating the self-destruction mechanism of the Queen Zenobia to destroy the labs and the evidence that would implicate Morgan Lansdale.
