Resident Evil Fans Adopt Love and Deepspace's Zayne as Leon and Ada's Son

Resident Evil enthusiasts, particularly fans of the Leon and Ada pairing, have embraced Love and Deepspace’s Zayne as their son. Discover how these two distinct fandoms unexpectedly merged.

Resident Evil x Love and Deepspace: An Unofficial Fan Crossover

“Aeon’s Canon,” According to Zayne’s Card

The worlds of Resident Evil (RE) and Love and Deepspace (LADS) collided after a series of humorous posts on X (formerly Twitter) suggested that Zayne, one of LADS’ love interests, is the long-lost son of Leon S. Kennedy and Ada Wong from the RE franchise. The trend began when a user noticed a 5-star card for Zayne labeled “Aeon’s Canon.” Coincidentally, “Aeon” serves as the ship name for Leon and Ada, while “canon” in fandom terminology refers to officially accepted narrative elements.

Responding to this discovery, another Aeon enthusiast designated Zayne as their ideal face claim for the imagined offspring of Leon and Ada, despite having little prior knowledge of LADS. “He has earned the title because he declared [that] Aeon is canon,” they joked. This connection may also stem from Zayne’s physical resemblance to both characters, particularly his likeness to Ada.

Following this initial post, users across various social media platforms, including Chinese networks, joined the fun. They created photoshopped images comparing Zayne with Leon and Ada side-by-side. One fan noted that Zayne inherited Leon’s dry wit, citing an instance where he responded to the LADS protagonist (MC) saying “These [books] are really heavy” by replying, “It’s the weight of knowledge.”

Much of the crossover content focused on family-oriented fan art. Depictions included “parents” cheering for Zayne at his graduation or a meet-the-parents scenario where Zayne introduces the MC as his girlfriend. Another illustration portrayed Zayne—Leon’s “Chinese son”—alongside the counter-bioterrorism agent’s “adopted daughters,” Sherry, Grace, and Emily.

The X user who originally sparked the Aeon trend also contributed fan art showing Leon and Ada dressed in white medical coats, with Leon carrying a toddler version of Zayne. The caption read: “Baby Zayne wanted to tag along on mama Ada and papa Leon’s undercover mission, so they couldn’t say no.” It further suggested that witnessing their work inspired him to pursue medicine as an adult.

Crafting Backstory from Two Unrelated Games

Fans have expanded the long-lost-son narrative by creating unofficial lore that links Zayne to Leon and Ada, despite their origins in vastly different genres. LADS is a sci-fi otome game—a dating simulator primarily targeting female audiences—while Resident Evil is an action-survival horror series.

Despite RE offering only subtle romantic hints, the Aeon pairing remains one of its most popular due to the enduring “will they, won’t they” dynamic that has persisted across multiple titles since their first meeting in 1998’s Resident Evil 2 (RE2). Current speculation surrounding Resident Evil Requiem (RE9), which features Leon wearing a wedding ring without revealing his wife’s identity, has further fueled discussions. Ada Wong is widely considered the prime suspect, alongside Claire Redfield, another main playable character from RE2.

In this constructed backstory, Zayne is portrayed as a stoic heart surgeon dedicated to helping those in need—a trait fans associate with Leon’s motivations. Like his parents, who were often absent due to demanding careers leaving him largely independent, Zayne shares their professional dedication.

Given these parallels, it seemed logical for fans that Zayne’s “parents” led busy lives and were rarely present. Leon serves as a federal agent for the Division of Security Operations (DSO), while Ada works as a mercenary and spy for various organizations. Fans theorized that both RE characters are working undercover as doctors to conceal their true identities from the public.

The fusion of Resident Evil and Love and Deepspace fandoms brought joy to players on both sides. Whether fans enjoyed seeing RE treat Zayne “like their own child” or were excited by the introduction of Aeon into LADS, the humor united them under the banner of creating “Zayne W. Kennedy.”

In a related development, several fans suggested that Xavier, another love interest in LADS, could also join the Kennedy family. “He has that blonde hair, acts like a cop just like papa Leon, and is soft-spoken like Zayne,” one user observed. “If Zayne inherited 90% of Ada’s genes, then Xavier got 90% [of] Leon’s.”