Resident Evil 2 actor strangled himself for Leon's death scene

The “voice” of Leon Kennedy in Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 4 almost shared the fate of a bunch of his character’s enemies. Nick Apostolides was a few steps away from strangling himself for the sake of realism.

The actor said that while recording one of the scenes, he got so excited that he fainted right in the studio. It happened during the final takes of Resident Evil 2. Neil Apostolides was supposed to record a scene where Leon allegedly dies at the hands of the Tyrant. He lifts the hero by the neck and literally strangles him. To make the sound more realistic, he poured some water down his throat and started squeezing his neck with his hands. Which, to be honest, already sounds quite dangerous. But he wasn’t interested in just pretending that his voice was becoming choked. He kept going.

“And during several takes, I kept my hands on my neck to convey the scene realistically. I started to lose consciousness, but I thought: “I’m going to do one more powerful take” — and I squeezed so hard that my brain stopped getting oxygen,” Nick Apostolides recalls.

Then Leon’s “voice” fainted. At first, the director thought it was part of the performance, until he saw that the actor turned blue and began to twitch. It was this moment, Apostolides says, that is preserved in Capcom’s archives. Moreover, the sound from that fake even made its way into the game and can accidentally sound like one of Leon’s death groans.

“I know this because I heard it and memorized it. It sounds great — mission accomplished,” he joked.

After that incident, the actor decided not to risk his life and now plays the strangulation scenes on his knees — so as not to faint. It’s not yet known whether Neil will repeat his crazy stunts in the upcoming Resident Evil Requiem, as there is no list of actors for the game yet. At least Leon Kennedy will definitely become one of the three game characters — but it is not known how. Either through flashbacks or he forgot something in Raqqun City 30 years after the attack on the city. Rumor has it that it will be his last major cameo in the franchise. So we wish his “voice” to be careful to give 100% during the work, so as not to make his cameo final.