With the recent drop of Capcom’s newest Resident Evil game, Resident Evil: Requiem, I thought it would be a good time to analyze one of the most prominent characters in the IP: Leon Kennedy. Having appeared in four games and multiple CGI films, starting in 1998, he has an arc that is more definable than others in the franchise. For the purposes of this post, we will be analyzing his experiences and the ensuing behavior to help form a diagnosis and treatment plan. Despite being incredibly resilient, the fight against Bioterror has left a lasting impact on him and we’re going to see just what that looks like through a therapeutic lens.
Leon’s first appearance is in Resident Evil 2 (1998) and its remake (2019), where he is a rookie cop going into his first day on the force. Entering Raccoon City, he finds it overrun with zombies and other creatures. He ends up escaping with the help of Ada Wong, Claire Redfield, and Sherry Birkin. Following this experience, he and Sherry are picked up by the U.S.government. The Government threatens Sherry’s wellbeing and strongarms Leon into becoming an agent specializing in the disposal of viral weaponry. For this first game, there isn’t much in the way of demonstrated symptoms. The only factor that becomes more prominent later in the series is drinking, as he slept in due to a hangover after his girlfriend dumped him the night before.
His next chronological appearance is in Resident Evil 4 (2005) and its remake (2023) and this is the game that starts to highlight the shift in his mental health. We learn in files that he was suicidal after Resident Evil 2 and debated taking his own life after the horrors he witnessed. He refrained and was later sent to recover the president’s daughter after her kidnapping by a religious cult called Los Illuminados. Leon shows several signs of PTSD throughout the story and is borderline depressed. He ruminates on Raccoon City and the people he “failed” to save. He struggles with identifying where he has changed and considers himself more cold to others than before. He runs into Ada Wong again and is not even remotely shocked that she is alive, flirting with her despite the fact that she is not even a proven ally. His physical appearance shows signs of stress and sleep deprivation, mostly under his eyes. While his skills as an agent have grown, he is lost about his place in the world and if he wants any part of it.
Degeneration (2008), the first CGI movie developed by Capcom, takes place the following year. Leon’s depression and PTSD are less pronounced and he is portrayed as a generic action hero. Despite a rather bland facade (which most likely goes back to that cold demeanor exhibited by PTSD sufferers), he does describe the Raccoon City Incident as a “hellish nightmare” and has intrusive flashbacks to the event. Despite briefly talking about Raccoon City, Leon also refuses to talk about his past for the most part and is aloof with most other people (with the exception of Claire Redfield, who also appears). While some might call this characterization of Leon as weak, we can also look at it as an accurate depiction of PTSD and how it can manifest.
Infinite Darkness (2021) is Netflix’s first CGI series that takes place in 2006 and follows Degeneration in the timeline. Leon here feels a little more human, but still exhibits some of the same signs as the last few entries. When his friend Jason talks about PTSD from the Panamstan war, Leon sympathizes and recounts his own experiences in Raccoon City. Leon shows intense hypervigilance throughout the show and is quick to guess that Shen Mai and Jason are up to something later in the story simply by watching their body language. This is also the first entry in the timeline where Leon mocks the infected, showing a detachment from how he used to behave around them. While before he used to be respectful to the creatures he put down (due to them being human or animals simply turned into monsters), here he is a lot less caring of that fact.
Damnation (2012) is the second CGI movie produced by Capcom and takes place in 2011, a tie-in for the then upcoming Resident Evil 6 (2012). This Leon is more rough and tumble than past iterations, with a darker presence that highlights years of being a service agent. While still making quips and using one-liners, his kills of the infected are even more aggressive and uncaring. He shuts people down and assumes the worst in them. He is quick to anger and shows a severe degree of desensitization over the horrors happening around him. He ignores orders from the White House to evacuate the area and puts himself at extreme risk several times. He runs into Ada Wong again and continues to flirt with her, despite knowing that she can never commit to him due to their opposing lines of work. Some might say he has an inability to stop fighting in this film. He feels that peace is not an option and is willing to lean into his violent streak to get things done. At the end of the movie, we see him drinking alone after the completion of his mission. While it is only one drink, it is a callback of how his adventure started in the first place and foreshadowing for where he would go as a character in the future.
Resident Evil 6 (2012) released to mixed reception from critics, but people praised Leon’s campaign and development. Set the year after Damnation, we see a similar Leon as before. He is hardened, more easy to anger, distrusting (mainly of Helena and Simmons), and mostly lacking empathy until the back portion of the story. The drinking has disappeared here, but we notice the continuation of his unhealthy relationship with Ada Wong and the codependence he feels for her. He continues to put himself in harm’s way for her and displays little regard for his own life when she is involved. Battle hardened, people die around him continuously in this entry and he fails to have much of a reaction to it.
Vendetta (2017) takes place the year after 6 and follows the trajectory of Damnation’s arc. He is now on vacation and drinking himself to extreme inebriation. He is hopeless and feels that he is in a repeat cycle of trauma and death. At first, he denies aid to Chris Redfield and Rebecca Chambers when they ask but later reconsiders. He again shows disregard for his own safety. A first for the series, he now shows a disregard for human life, throwing a grenade on an active highway to blow up infected dogs (and killing other drivers in the process). This version of Leon is meant to showcase him at his worst. Suicidal tendencies are illuded to but not outright stated, though he questions why he should continue the fight against bioterror. He is fragile and starting to crack but finds renewed purpose after stopping a terrorist attack on New York. This would mark the last appearance of a drinking problem for Leon, though this does not mean it doesn’t occur off-screen.
A year later in the timeline, Death Island (2023) shows a jarring change in Leon’s characterization. He is more calm, collected, and put together than in the past. He is still hypervigilant, but he appears to not suffer from flashbacks from past events or have much in the way of rumination. He still is hyperaware of his surroundings, but there is more trust than in the past few entries. His quips are more lighthearted and he works better on a team than in the past. His interactions with Chris and Rebecca have changed from tense to friendly, his appearance is brighter, and there are no signs of any alcohol being consumed. He continues to put his life on the line, but it feels more intentional and less erratic than in previous entries.
Spoilers for the newest game ahead. Leon’s latest appearance is in the newest videogame in the series, Resident Evil: Requiem (2026), set 28 years after Resident Evil 2. One of the hooks for this game is Leon and his return to a nuked Raccoon City and his exploration of the ruins. This version seems to have all the positive and most of the negative traits the character has possessed across the series. He still has a disregard for his own life, hypervigilance that helps with combat, avoidance when it comes to his T-virus infection, and a numbness about life and what his death might mean for the world. No alcohol is seen as a coping mechanism. While exploring Raccoon City, he has flashbacks to events that happened. He admits to continuing to feel guilt over deaths he deems as his fault. After curing himself of the T-virus, he seems to be an even lighter individual. A blink and you’ll miss it moment shows that he even found time to get married, though his partner is currently unknown. He walks off into the sunset, smiling as he gets to put Raccoon City to bed for good. While he is not free of his symptoms and will need to battle them for the remainder of his life, he doesn’t seem to be as high of a risk to himself or others.
Given that we have done a brief analysis of nine Leon Kennedy appearances, there is a lot to look into. We will break down the recurring symptoms and what it means for his mental health. His disregard for his own life, flashbacks to past events, detached demeanor, distrust of others, anger, and avoidance when talking about past horrors all point to a PTSD diagnosis. His drinking would also earn him an Alcohol Use Disorder diagnosis. While his depictions have not always stayed the most accurate (due to different creative teams and the evolving nature of the series), there is enough of a general characterization that these two would be easy enough to give. A treatment plan for him would probably involve addressing the trauma he has faced, finding adaptive coping skills, and eliminating drinking. Leon struggles with finding healthy outlets to express himself, which would not be uncommon in his line of work. Depending on who his partner is, there may need to be counseling about managing his trauma so it doesn’t impact the relationship as much. If it is someone in the fight against bio-organic weapons, they might be more understanding of the sacrifices involved. If they are a civilian, there might be more of a disconnect around what his line of work means and how that will change the dynamics.
As demonstrated in the long list of appearances, Leon Kennedy has been through a lot in his first 50 years. He has lost countless friends, allies, and loved ones. Battle hardened and world weary, he has more than enough trauma to last a lifetime. His resilience is commendable but his coping skills could use some work. Unless the DSO (the organization he works for) is different, he will soon be forced to retire. That might end up helping his mental health struggles in the long run, as he will no longer be around triggering events and can instead focus on recovery and leading a more normal life. He can focus on what makes him happy and stop being a soldier, always ready for the next mission. He can finally find a peace that he hasn’t had since age 21.
