Monster Hunter's Paul W.S. Anderson on how Milla Jovovich's character is 'avatar for the audience'

After finding great success with his Resident Evil adaptations, writer-director Paul W.S. Anderson has now set his cinematic sights on another monstrous Capcom franchise: Monster Hunter. In a new behind-the-scenes featurette provided exclusively to SYFY WIRE, Anderson explains how he embraced the customizable nature of the video games when it came to crafting his main, beast-slaying protagonist, Artemis — played by the filmmaker's frequent collaborator and real-world wife, Milla Jovovich.

"She's the new character, she's the avatar for the audience, and she's their way into the world of the video game," Anderson says. "So when you play the video game for the first time, you know nothing about the world. You will follow her adventures in the same way that you would follow the adventures of your own character."

Watch below:

When Captain Artemis and her elite unit (played by Tip "T.I." Harris, Meagan Good, and Diego Boneta) are mysteriously transported to another dimension filled with bloodthirsty behemoths, they struggle to stay alive... until they meet the Hunter (Tony Jaa). This enigmatic newcomer has adapted to the monster world, using the beasts' own defenses against them. He's one step ahead of the beasties, and as Artemis slowly builds up trust with the Hunter, she learns that he is just one member of a band of human survivors led by the Admiral (Ron Perlman). Together, both groups will prepare for the ultimate monster showdown and figure out a way to escape.

"In many ways, I think the Monster Hunter world is better than our world," Anderson recently admitted during a Capcom Twitch stream. "The creatures are killed, yes, but then you use every part of the creatures; you eat them, you craft with them. So all of that I think is quite admirable as opposed to a world where we just throw so much away."

Josh Helman (Mad Max: Fury Road) and Jin Au-Yeung (2 Fast 2 Furious) co-star.

Sony has moved up Monster Hunter's theatrical bow to next Friday, Dec. 18.