Everything We Know About 28 Years Later: It Took Almost 3 Decades for a Sequel, but Who’s Counting?

Over two decades after the release of the genre-defining zombie film 28 Days Later, director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland are returning to the realm of horror with the long-awaited 28 Years Later. Essentially helping to jump-start the zombie craze of the 2000s, 28 Days Later follows an average bicycle courier named Jim (Cillian Murphy) who awakens from a month-long coma to find all of London has been besieged by a zombie rage virus. Eschewing the tropes of earlier zombie media, the walkers of 28 Days Later were faster, meaner, and more frightening than their predecessors.

Though Garland and Boyle were only involved peripherally, a sequel was released in 2007 entitled 28 Weeks Later which continued the post-apocalyptic story and was well-received. Meanwhile, the 28 Days Later franchise helped to bring the zombie film back into vogue, and is directly responsible for movies like the Dawn of the Dead remake, spoofs like Shaun of the Dead, and the ongoing Walking Dead universe. Now, Boyle and Garland are returning to deliver even more terror in 28 Years Later, and the creative duo have big plans for an extended sequel series.

28 Years Later Latest News

Filming Wraps On The Horror Sequel

With production beginning in May 2024, a surprising recent update confirms that filming has wrapped on 28 Years Later (via Collider). Likely rushing production in order to hit the movie’s June 2025 release date, the film only shot for the better part of two months before completing principal photography in the UK. Much is still unknown about the movie’s plot, but it can be assumed that crucial details will be revealed as the long-awaited threequel goes further into its post-production phase.

28 Years Later Release Date

The Zombie Franchise Returns In 2025

With many updates coming in the months since the project was formally announced, 28 Years Later has officially set a release date as well. Though it will take a while to arrive, the long-awaited zombie threequel is slated to premiere on June 20, 2025. The summer release slot is befitting a potential blockbuster, and there have been no announcements regarding the release dates of movies two and three in the planned trilogy.

28 Years Later Cast

Cillian Murphy Returns As Jim

The cast of 28 Years Later is beginning to take shape, though it is largely shrouded in mystery as well. Cillian Murphy starred in 28 Days Later and though his character survived, Jim was absent in the first sequel. With Murphy attached to produce, it’s since been revealed he will reprise his role and co-star along with announced cast members like Aaron Taylor-Johnson. Taylor-Johnson isn’t the only name added to the burgeoning ensemble, as Jodie Comer and Ralph Fiennes will also appear, though their roles haven’t been disclosed yet.

Jack O’Connell has also been cast, though his role is intriguing because it will grow throughout the trilogy. While the scope of the roles of Fiennes and Taylor-Johnson are unknown, O’Connell’s unnamed character will play a part in all three movies.

28 Years Later: Story Details

Three Decades Of The Rage Virus

There have been no 28 Year Later story details revealed yet, but the title suggests the movie will take a big leap in time to explore the impact of the virus outbreak. Though there was initially a script for 28 Months Later (via Variety), it seems like Alex Garland and Danny Boyle are taking a new approach and focusing on 28 Years Later. While the ending of 28 Days Later gave an optimistic conclusion that suggested the infected were no more, the virus returned in the sequel, which saw the contained civilization crumble and London returned to chaos.

28 Weeks Later ended on a much darker note with the survivors escaping to Paris only to find it overrun with infected. It is safe to assume the third movie will deal with the 28 Days Later virus once again, but it remains to be seen if the world has been in shambles since the end of the second movie or if it will be a scenario of life getting