Grace's actor in Resident Evil Requiem says Capcom wanted to return to the series' horror roots
Angela Sant'Albano, who plays Grace Ashcroft in Resident Evil Requiem, admitted that before working on the game she had no familiarity with the series or horror games in general. From the start, Capcom gave her a clear direction: the studio wanted to return to the franchise's roots – the tense, creeping horror that Resident Evil was once known for.
"I watched a ton of gameplay, because [Capcom] referred a lot to the fact that they wanted to go back to the horror Resident Evil games. It was my first experience with horror, so I really wanted to make sure that I was capturing that and leaning into that slow, creeping tone that you really need to achieve."
Grace is a brand-new character for the franchise, and in that sense she's a direct contrast to the second protagonist, Leon Kennedy. Nick Apostolides returns to voice Leon after working on the remakes of Resident Evil 2 and 4 and the animated series Infinite Darkness. Grace's first-person segments appear to echo the approach of Resident Evil 7 – survival with minimal combat tools.
To capture the right mood on set, the team turned to an unexpected but logical solution.
"We would turn off all the light [in] the studio, and we would only operate by flashlight or camera light on our head – I think [Capcom was] very good at trying to make the situation feel as close to what it was without, you know, having a real-life zombie running at you."
The actors were in standard motion capture suits, but the darkness and working by flashlight helped them get into the right headspace.
Alongside watching gameplay, Sant'Albano started playing the games herself and got unexpectedly hooked on Resident Evil 4.
"I remember looking up and thinking, 'I've been playing for three and a half hours. Where did the time go?' Terrifying – but it's so immersive, and it's the most amazing distraction, because you have to be so incredibly focused that time just flies, which I think is great, but also," she laughed, "a bit of a time suck."
Resident Evil Requiem is available on PC, PS5, Xbox Series, and Nintendo Switch 2.
