It's finally happening – the official sequel to 28 Days Later is happening!
In 2002, a film came out that truly shook the world, 28 Days Later. Classified as a zombie horror film and a post-apocalyptic drama, it follows a bicycle courier who suffers a coma. Then, he wakes up to one of his life's most surprising and horrifying events – the world has turned chaotic as a virus was unleashed, turning humans into aggression-based monsters – basically, freaking strong zombies.
The film, directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland, is considered one of the best of the early 2000s and critically acclaimed. Since then, it's only continued to grow in popularity as one of the best horror films out there – and now, 28 Years Later is finally happening.
But, who is coming back for this movie? And when might it come out? Here is what we know so far.
What Is The 28 Years Later Release Date?
As of May 2024, 28 Years Later is set to release at some point in the summer of 2025. The Hollywood Reporter said that Sony confirmed the news of the film's release.
While this won’t be on any 2024 movie schedule, this makes me that much more excited for 2025.
28 Years Later has been discussed for a long time. The director and writer, Danny Boyle and Alex Garland, have spoken about a sequel for many years, and back in July 2023, they talked to Inverse about an idea that manifested a few years ago and that they were taking it "quite seriously:"
So we're talking about it quite seriously, quite diligently. If he doesn't want to direct it himself I'll be well up for it, if we can execute a similarly good idea.
The person Boyle was referring to was his writing partner, Alex Garland, and now, since the film is confirmed, Boyle will be returning to direct, and Garland is writing it, so it turned out fine in the end.
The 28 Years Later Cast Includes Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jodie Comer And More
If you were wondering who has joined the cast of 28 Years Later, we have you covered. Here is who you can expect to see:
Aaron Taylor-Johnson
Deadline confirmed three stars in late April 2024, the first being Aaron Taylor-Johnson. The actor is known for many roles. While he gained much fame for his portrayal of Quicksilver in Avengers: Age of Ultron, Taylor-Johnson has appeared in a variety of films like Savages, Anna Karenina, Godzilla, Nocturnal Animals, Bullet Train, Tenet, and the 2024 action movie The Fall Guy.
Jodie Comer
Jodie Comer is also set to appear in 28 Years Later. Comer gained worldwide significance when she co-starred in Killing Eve, earning her several accolades and nominations, but Comer has also appeared in shows like My Mad Fat Diary, Doctor Foster, and more. She’s also held roles in Free Guy and The Last Duel, among other films.
Ralph Fiennes
Also confirmed from that Deadline article is that Ralph Fiennes will star in 28 Years Later. I’m sure many people of my age know Fiennes as the infamous villain, Voldemort, from the Harry Potter films. However, Fiennes is a very talented actor who has been around for several decades and appeared in many great films, such as The Reader, The Hurt Locker, Schindler’s List, The English Patient, The Grand Budapest Hotel, The Menu, In Bruges, The Duchess and many more.
Jack O’Connell
In early May 2024, it was confirmed by Deadline that Jack O’Connell would also star in 28 Years Later. The actor has recently taken on the role of playing Amy Winehouse’s husband in Back to Black, but has also appeared in films such as Starred Up, Money Monsters, Trial by Fire and more.
Talk about a cast – and I’m sure this isn’t even the end of announcements for it.
Cillian Murphy Will Return To Executive Produce – But Will He Also Star?
Cillian Murphy gained a lot of fame for his starring role in 28 Days Later, but he's only continued to grow in popularity over the decades since. From his starring role in the hit show Peaky Blinders (which is one of the best shows to binge on Netflix), to his critically acclaimed performance as lead of the Oppenheimer cast, I think recently is the most we've ever seen Murphy – and his star is only going to continue to rise.
However, in May 2024, it was confirmed by that Hollywood Reporter article about the release date that Cillian Murphy would be returning to executive produce the film. Even so, this doesn’t confirm that he’ll physically appear again in the film.
Murphy has been open about the possibility of returning for a sequel to 28 Days Later in the past. He spoke to Collider about the idea in July 2023 and said that if Garland had a good story, he was always down to return for a new sequel, as he knew it was getting closer to the mark of "28 years later" from the original:
I was talking to Danny Boyle recently, and I said, 'Danny, we shot the movie at the end of 2000.' So I think we're definitely approaching the 28 Years Later. But like I've always said, I'm up for it. I'd love to do it. If Alex thinks there's a script in it and Danny wants to do it, I'd love to do it.
Right now, he’s only confirmed as a producer, but we will update this if he is confirmed to star as well.
28 Years Later Would Be A Sequel To 28 Days Later, Not 28 Weeks Later
While we might be all excited for 28 Years Later, let's not forget that there already was a sequel at one point – 28 Weeks Later. But this new movie isn't a sequel to that 2007 film; rather, it'll be a new story, according to The Hollywood Reporter article from earlier.
For 28 Weeks Later, Boyle and Garland only acted as executive producers, but this time, they will return to the main job of writing and directing. It was relatively well-received and made a good profit at the box office, but compared to the first film, it could have been more successful.
However, with these two returning for this sequel, I'm excited to see what it will be about. The current story details are kept under lock and key, but when we hear something, it will land in this article.
28 Years Later Is Meant To Start A New Trilogy Of Films
Something else we learned from The Hollywood Reporter article is that 28 Years Later isn't going to be a standalone sequel – it is meant to begin another trilogy of films within the same universe as 28 Days Later.
There have been plenty of trilogies in Hollywood that have done immensely well, such as The Hangover films or The Lord of the Rings movies, but I wonder how many more clever titles there could be after 28 Years Later. Are we going to dive into centuries now? 28 Centuries Later? How long can zombies live?
Jokes aside, the hope is to launch a new trilogy of films, further expanding the world and possibly making it one of the best zombie franchises ever.
Danny Boyle Is Returning To Direct
As mentioned before, Danny Boyle will return to direct 28 Years Later. He directed the first film, and has since only continued to spread his wings in Hollywood and direct several significant movies.
Some of his most-known films since then include Steve Jobs, 127 Hours, Yesterday, and even the Best Picture-winning Slumdog Millionaire. He's created some of the last decade's best films, now, we'll see him back in the world of zombies.
We know that Danny Boyle, however, will not be directing the second film in the new trilogy. That will be Nia DaCosta, according to Deadline in April 2024. The director has done Candyman, Little Woods, and The Marvels.
Alex Garland Is Returning To Write All Three Films
Alex Garland isn't just signed on to work on 28 Years Later – he's set to write that film, as well as the rest of the trilogy that they are hopeful will follow the release of this sequel, which is freaking awesome if I don't say so myself.
Garland has also written some impressive movies since 28 Days Later, including Sunshine, Ex Machina, and more. He also wrote the series Devs (one of Nick Offerman's best roles) and the horror movie Men (one of A24's best horror movies). In 2024, he released another film – which he wrote and directed –called Civil War, which has received stellar reviews.
However, Garland looks to stick around the world of 28 Years Later for some time – and I am so here for it.
The 28 Years Later Rating
There’s no set rating yet for 28 Years Later, but I think we can expect that it’ll be rated R. The first film was very much a hard R, while the second movie was also an R-rating – so it would be pretty shocking for this new film not follow in its footsteps.
What are you looking forward to the most when it comes to 28 Years Later? I think it's time for a rewatch – Is anyone up for a zombie movie night?
