Rumors regarding Resident Evil 8 have been pouring down the grapevine quite frequently as of late. One of the latest rumors suggests that one of the main villains in Resident Evil 8 will be someone named Alan.
If this rumor proves to be true, one question that lingers is whether Alan will be a new character or a returning character in Resident Evil 8. Searching through Resident Evil's vast chronology of lore, there appears to be an Alan Erdot and an Alan Droney.
Resident Evil 8 Villains: Alan Erdot?
Alan Erdot, the less likely possibility, was only mentioned briefly in the Files in Resident Evil Outbreak from 2004. He participated in illegal drug trade in the early 1990s. In the Resident Evil universe, the drug trade included some reach into the bio-weapons black market, including Umbrella. It is believed Alan Erdot was deceased after returning to his original hospital, only to discover it had been taken over by "Dorothy", a monstrous plant. In the grand picture of the Resident Evil universe, his role and these storylines were fairly insignificant side-stories.
The more likely possibility is seeing Resident Evil 8 bring Alan Droney to the spotlight with a role in the game, especially given that he played a brief role in Resident Evil 7. Despite a brief role, more could be expanded upon his unique background.
Resident Evil 8 Villains: Alan Droney?
To start, Alan Droney was a former operative in Resident Evil 7's secretive group, The Connections, which created the Eveline experiment and the Mold. When this project got out of hand aboard its research vessel, it crashed off the shore of The Baker Family home, thereby infecting them and creating the hideous creatures which confront the main protagonist Ethan Winters throughout the game.
Alan Droney was also aboard that boat with Mia Winters, the wife of Resident Evil 7's Ethan Winters and research scientist for the Eveline project aboard the vessel. He was involved in some matter or another with attempting to transport Eveline. Alan Droney was apparently killed by Eveline's mold infection in Resident Evil 7. However, in regards to the fact that the Resident Evil universe is not a newcomer to finding creative ways of bringing back characters thought completely deceased, it probably would not be hard to find a way for Capcom's writers and creative team to figure this one out.
Given that Ethan Winters was also infected with the Mold, survived, and is rumored to continue to be the main protagonist in Resident Evil 8, there is certainly room for the possibility of Alan Droney making his way into the game in some capacity. Though he appears to be killed by the Mold in Resident Evil 7, the Mold has ways of reanimating individuals quite easily through Eveline's powers.
Provided rumors of a redesigned Chris Redfield are true, his role in "Blue Umbrella" is already quite mysterious, Resident Evil 8 could be focused on themes of characters who return as some other person, distant in some way from who they once were. Given that Ethan Winters was just a regular person who worked a regular day job with no connection to the Resident Evil universe prior to Resident Evil 7, his experiences and becoming infected with the mold certainly could have given him an important role in the anti-bio warfare industry, or possibly "Blue Umbrella."
It would make some sense for Alan Droney to return, for a few reasons. So little is known about The Connections in Resident Evil 7 and having a former operative in the group, who was directly responsible for oversight of the Eveline project, would certainly give a new sense of insight into the organization.
Secondly, it would make sense to have someone from The Connections play a villainous role in Resident Evil 8 in order to expand upon Resident Evil 7's reach into the universe as it heads forward. This would possibly provide more background to The Connections and its potential links to prior Resident Evil games or the bio-weapon industry in general. After all, there is some small but concrete lore stating that iconic Resident Evil villain Albert Wesker, or at least his paramilitary group, had some role in helping The Connections develop the Mold. Though there is no concrete evidence, yet, of a link to Umbrella, the possibility is always there.
Finally, if there is some sort of strength or uniqueness which gives Ethan Winters a more important role heading forward into Resident Evil 8 due to potential remnants of the Mold in his bloodstream, or antibodies. It would make sense to have a villain who would, presumably, have some sort of similar attributes or strengths, potentially, if Alan Droney somehow survived the Eveline and her Mold in Resident Evil 7 as well.
Anything is possible in the Resident Evil universe, and while it is hard to make concrete speculations with the information we have, Alan could also be an entirely new character. As rumors seemingly continue to trickle in, hopefully Capcom will have something more solid regarding the premise and details of Resident Evil 8.
Resident Evil 8 is rumored to be currently in development.