Leon Kennedy was first introduced to gamers as one of the two playable protagonists in Resident Evil 2. Since then, he has been in numerous Resident Evil projects, including the highly celebrated Resident Evil 4. Throughout his more than 20 years as one of the stars of the franchise, he has gone through numerous changes.
Some of these make sense and are simply a character going through an arc, while others feel less logical. With the upcoming live-action film, Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City, coming in 2021, we wonder how actor Avan Jogia will portray him.
10 His Personality
In Resident Evil 2, Leon is serving his first day as a police officer in Raccoon City. As such, he is unprepared for the horrors waiting for him. By Resident Evil 4 he is turned into a cocky, wisecracking action hero.
It has been six years since his living nightmare, and people do change, but Leon in Resident Evil 4 feels like he belongs in a bad action movie from the 1980s.
9 Voice Actors
Resident Evil in general has a hard time holding on to the same voice actors. Leon Kennedy has had a total of five voice actors in the west. Of all of these, Nick Apostolides’s take in the Resident Evil 2 remake received particular praise.
In fact, he is set to reprise the role in Resident Evil: Infinite Darkness, the upcoming animated series set to air on Netflix in 2021. Changing voice actors so frequently is not unheard of in gaming.
8 He Gets Bigger And More Muscular
Leon is pretty slim in Resident Evil 2, and this look is even reflected in the remake. Fast forward to his mission saving Ashley Graham in Resident Evil 4 and he is notably larger and more buff. We cannot blame him, however. We’d probably hit the gym more frequently if we just survived a massive zombie infestation. Either that or he met up with Chris Redfield and got jealous of his giant muscles.
7 He Turns To The Drink
Leon always seemed pretty straight-laced, but he turns to a darker side in the animated film Resident Evil: Vendetta. After he loses most of his squad and then has to kill their zombified corpses, the trauma of the event makes him turn to the drink.
This is the state Chris Redfield and Rebecca Chambers find him in the first part of the film. Chris was in a similar state in Resident Evil 6, but fortunately is able to get out of his stupor.
6 Meets Chris Redfield
In Resident Evil 2 Leon teams up with Claire Redfield to escape Raccoon City. Claire is also in the city to look for her brother. Even though the two are complete strangers, they become good friends by the end of the journey.
Only later does Leon meet Chris, however, and the two eventually team up in Resident Evil: Vendetta. A long-running joke among fans is a theory that Chris very badly wants Leon to be in a relationship with Claire.
5 He Becomes More Confident In Dealing With B.O.Ws
In Resident Evil 2 Leon barely makes it through the Raccoon City ordeal. In Resident Evil 4, we see him dispatch of enemies like he’s cracking open eggs for breakfast. It only makes sense for him to become more confident.
After all, in Resident Evil 2 he falls into the situation unwillingly, while in Resident Evil 4 he is in the Spanish village on a mission and is prepared to deal with whatever might come his way.
4 He Becomes More Flirtatious
Thankfully, Leon is respectful to Claire during the events of Resident Evil 2. It would be in bad taste to ask her out in the middle of a zombie outbreak.
In Resident Evil 4 he is infinitely more flirtatious, cracking jokes with Ashley and even hitting on Hunnigan before the game ends. While office romances are not necessarily a bad thing, hitting on a coworker before a mission is over probably crosses some ethical boundaries.
3 His Look Is Entirely Different
We already covered Leon’s size, and this makes sense. However, his overall look changes significantly throughout the games, to the point where he is almost unrecognizable. Even by Resident Evil 4 he barely looks like the character we played as in 1998’s Resident Evil 2.
Future games further tweak things about his looks. The Remake, fortunately, makes him look more like a younger version of himself from the future games. Radical character redesigns are nothing new for gaming, though.
2 He Undergoes Intense Government Training
Part of his change in demeanor and increased confidence is the intense government training he receives after Resident Evil 2. While we’re sure the Raccoon City Police Academy is no cakewalk, the training he received as a future government agent probably prepares him for any situation.
Curiously, he still does not have the ability to walk and aim at the same time until Resident Evil 6. Too bad the government could not teach him to come up with better dialogue.
1 Becomes Involved With Jack Krauser
During his time as a government agent, Leon goes on a mission to Africa with Jack Krauser. These events, playable the light gun game, Resident Evil: The Darkside Chronicles, end with Krauser being injured. Leon later learns that Krauser dies, but this was a lie.
The two eventually reunite in Resident Evil 4, where Leon kills Krauser in an intense fight. Krauser was looking to help Umbrella rise up once again after its fall into obscurity following the Raccoon City incident.
