Capcom’s Japanese TV commercial for Biohazard 2 — the domestic title for Resident Evil 2 — was directed by George A. Romero and shot in late 1997 in Los Angeles at the Lincoln Heights Jail, dressed as the Raccoon City Police Department. George is credited as special effects and makeup designer, responsible for the zombie horde and the practical elements built to represent the Licker. On screen, the zombies are painted in dark browns and blacks rather than bright theatrical red, with peeled latex that looks like dried, coagulated blood.
Romero’s involvement, the roughly $1.5 million budget, and the casting of Brad Renfro are well reported. Two adjacent claims rest on thinner ground: the casting of Adrienne Frantz, and the claim that the commercial led directly to Romero’s (later rejected) Resident Evil screenplay.