Resident Evil is a game series that’s not for the faint of heart. It’s a survival horror shooter that tests players’ mettle and stomachs. There’s gore, zombies, and intense boss fights, and that was just back in 1998 when Resident Evil 2 was first made. Now, in 2019, there’s a remake that takes those classic pixels and elevates to them new, terrifying heights. It sticks to the classic story that die-hard fans fell in love with but is also timeless enough that a new batch of horror fanatics will surely love as well.
There are two interconnected stories for players to enjoy, but you’ll need to finish one full playthrough to access the other character. One of the characters you’ll be playing as is the brave, and noble Claire Redfield. Here are 10 things you probably didn’t know about her.
10 Her Stats
Maybe you want to cosplay or maybe you just love to know random facts about your favorite characters, but no matter the reason we’ve got all that for you. While her exact birth month is unknown, we know that she was born in 1979. She stands 169cm tall (that’s 5 ft 6.5 in for those of us on Imperial system) and weighs about 116 lb (52.4 kg). She’s also blood type O, which is good. In her line of work, losing blood is probably an everyday thing. With an O type, getting or donating for a transfusion would be simple. Grim? Wait till you play the game.
9 Her Power
Claire may look like a small, frail thing to some, but underneath that is a grade A, motorcycling bad you-know-what. Her brother, ex-Air Force turned S.T.A.R.S operative Chris Redfield, taught her to be proficient in armed combat and hand-to-hand combat. She’s also strong enough to send zombies flying with her roundhouse kicks and can physically fight off behemoths like G-Creatures and Tyrant. Did we mention she can also kick zombie’s heads off like it’s nothing? ‘Cuz she can. Maybe she was a big Mortal Kombat fan growing up.
8 She Was Almost Someone Else
Early in the development of the game, there were plans for a character named Elza Walker. Elza would have been the companion to Leon in place of Claire. Elza was also planned to be a motorcycling college student, but that’s where the similarities end. Elza would have had no personal relation to Chris or any other core cast member at that point in the series. Elza was also planned to be blonde instead of brunette.
7 Claire Reunites with Her Brother
Three months after the events in Raccoon City in Resident Evil 2, Claire departs once more in search of her brother. Her search leads her to Paris which picks up a new title called Resident Evil CODE: Veronica. Here, Claire teams up with Steve to raid the Umbrella facility there in search of Chris.
They find him eventually, but not after plenty of the blood, gore, guts, and death that the series is known for. Finally reunited with her brother, they escape the facility to continue the fight against Umbrella Corp.
6 Her Live-Action Film Portrayal
Claire shows up in three of Resident Evil’s live-action films: Extinction, Afterlife, and The Final Chapter. In each of these films, she’s portrayed by Ali Larter, a New Jersey-born model and actress. Larter has appeared in several TV shows most of us were obsessed with like Dawson’s Creek, The League, and Varsity Blues. She also appeared in several box office hits including Final Destination as titular protagonist Clear Rivers and Legally Blonde as Brooke Taylor Windham. While she isn’t often credited as being a singer, Larter starred in the 2007 romantic musical comedy Marigold: An Adventure in India.
5 Her Voice in the Original Game
Claire Redfield has appeared in a total of 7 installations in the series so far. In six of these titles, she’s voiced by Canadian actress Alyson Court: Resident Evil 2, Code: Veronica, Degeneration, The Darkside Chronicles, The Mercenaries 3D, and Operation Raccoon City. In addition to voice acting in the games, she’s also done a little bit of directing in the series and aided in the localization of other Capcom titles.
When helping with Mega Man X5, she’s credited with renaming the Maverick Bosses after the members of Gun ‘n’ Roses. Outside of video games, she’s been the voice of several animated characters like Malani the Ewok in Star Wars: Ewoks and Lydia Deetz in the animated adaptation of Beetlejuice. She’s also the zany-cool Loonette the Clown on The Big Comfy Couch.
4 Her Voice in the Remake
So far, the only entry in the series where Court is not the voice actress is in the Resident Evil 2 Remake. In this game, she’s voiced by American actress Stephanie Panisello. Whether Panisello will take over in any future iterations of Claire’s character is yet to be seen. Outside Resident Evil 2, she’s also done additional voices on other games like Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, Mobius Final Fantasy, The Evil Within 2, and Final Fantasy XV’s DLC “Episode Ardyn.” She has also worked in the sound department on several games as a Voice Over Session Assistant. If that wasn’t enough to impress you, she also did some motion capture. Talk about talent.
3 Her Lines Were Delivered Twice
In an effort to make them as life-like as possible, Sony wanted to hire Hollywood actors to perform motion capture for each character in Resident Evil: Degeneration. Naturally, what Sony wants, Sony gets, so they did just that. Claire’s lines were first recorded by Lori Rom during the motion capture process. Rom’s body and facial movements were digitally mapped and transferred into the renders for the film. This helped to deliver a more authentic film despite the entirety of the movie being done in CGI. After this initial capture, Alyson Court was brought in to dub over those captured lines.
2 She Was Modeled After a Real-Life Person
When we say modeled, we mean her inspiration was an actual model. It’s not uncommon for characters to be conjured up from the depths of the imaginations of talented character designers, but sometimes, artists will take a more direct approach when modeling their characters. Claire’s character model is one of these times. Model Jordan Mcewen was hired to serve as the inspiration for artists working on the character. In 2016, Mcewen announced on her Instagram that she actually performed the shoot in Osaka in 2014. Naturally, given the timeline, it’s fair to say that Mcewen only served as the model for the remake.
1 There’s A Personification That Exists Only in Japan
There’s a commercial that aired exclusively in Japan that was directed by George Romero. In it, Leon and Claire are seen preparing to face down the incoming zombies. Claire is played by American actress, singer, and songwriter Adrienne Frantz. This is the only time that Frantz portrays the character, and is interviewed for the Making of Biohazard 2 TV-CM. This VHS is also a Japan-exclusive and gives viewers an inside look into the production process of the commercial. Did we mention that in Japan Resident Evil is known as Biohazard? That’s important info, Folks, write that down.