Paul W.S. Anderson had originally intended to begin production by Fall 2013 on the sixth installment in the video game-turned movie franchise Resident Evil written and produced by Anderson (who also directed three of the previous five installments). However, thanks to factors like a longer than expected post-producton on the Anderson-directed Pompeii - which released earlier this year - that didn't happen.

The currently-untitled Resident Evil 6 will again be scripted and directed by Anderson, with series lead Milla Jovovich reprising as Alice for what may be the character's final round of zombie-slaying - until someone gets it in mind to reboot this franchise down the line, anyway.

Anderson, while at the 2014 Beijing International Film Festival, was quoted by CCTV (hat tip to STYD) as saying that Chinese actor Binging Li will reprise her role as Ada Wong from Resident Evil: Retribution in the sixth movie, which shall (like the two Resident Evil films before it) be shot in 3D, since Anderson feels that "3D technology has now become the fabric [of] film." Furthermore, the CCTV report calls this new installment Rising Resident Evil; that could be the result of a translation issue, in which case the actual full title may be Resident Evil: Rising - or, failing that, a subtitle that is relatively similar to "Rising" (Uprising, Ascension, etc.).

Milla Jovovich and Bingbing Li in Resident Evil: Retribution

Retribution might have made a larger mess of the series' already-convoluted mythology (depending on who you ask), but it was yet another financial success for the franchise; that it managed to gross $240 million worldwide against a $65 million budget ensured that a sixth film will happen. Similarly, moviegoers who still count themselves as fans (or those who've simply managed to stick through the weaker chapters) will surely appreciate getting some actual closure to the series' overarching story with RE6.

The sixth Resident Evil movie now looks to hit theaters by 2015 (in keeping with Jovovich's recent predictions), most likely in September - similar to all but the first installment, which opened in March instead. So far, Everest is the only other film slated to arrive in September 2015 that appears to be gunning for the same demographic as Anderson's latest project should be (i.e. moviegoers in the mood for 3D action entertainment).

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We'll keep you posted on Resident Evil 6 development as more news emerges.

Source: CCTV [via STYD]