28 Years Later trilogy plans confirmed and first plot details revealed

3 weeks ago 4

Cillian Murphy stands in an abandoned London in 28 Days Later.

New plot details for Sony Pictures’ 28 Years Later have been revealed. The long-awaited sequel is set to hit theaters in the summer of 2025 — 22 years after its franchise’s parent film, 28 Days Later, was originally released and 18 years after that movie’s sequel, 28 Weeks Later, made its theatrical debut in 2007. The new film marks a reunion between 28 Days Later director Danny Boyle and screenwriter Alex Garland, and a sequel, titled 28 Years Later Part II: The Bone Temple, has already been announced.

The Marvels director Nia DaCosta is set to helm the sequel, which began filming in August. While The Bone Temple‘s full cast has not yet been announced, it will be based on a screenplay written by Garland and Boyle. It has been previously reported that The Bone Temple could ultimately be just the second installment of a planned trilogy, too. Those intentions have now been reaffirmed by one of the stars of 28 Years Later, who has also shared some new insight into the forthcoming film’s mysterious plot.

In a recent interview with IndieWire, Conclave star Ralph Fiennes offered an exciting update on the progress of 28 Years Later and its sequel, confirming, “It’s three films, of which two have been shot.” The actor went on to reveal some intriguing new details about the sequel’s plot, adding, “Britain is 28 years into this terrible plague of infected people who are violent, rabid humans with a few pockets of uninfected communities. And it centers on a young boy who wants to find a doctor to help his dying mother. He leads his mother through this beautiful northern English terrain. But of course, around them hiding in forests and hills and woods are the infected.”

Cillian Murphy runs away from a flaming zombie in 28 Days Later.

IndieWire reveals that Fiennes himself plays the doctor that 28 Years Later‘s young protagonist is searching for, whom the actor teases “is a man we might think is going to be weird and odd, but actually is a force for good.” In addition to Fiennes, 28 Years Later stars Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jack O’Connell, Erin Kellyman, Edvin Ryding, and Cillian Murphy. Outside of the details provided by Fiennes, little else is known about the film’s plot and characters. Murphy is, however, expected to reprise his role as Jim from 28 Days Later in both Boyle’s 28 Years Later and the DaCosta-directed Bone Temple.

Whether or not Murphy will also appear in the purported third installment of the franchise’s sequel trilogy remains to be seen. The same goes for the project’s director, stars, and title, none of which have been revealed yet. It is possible, in fact, that Sony may wait to see how 28 Years Later does before officially committing to a second sequel to it. Either way, Fiennes’ comments confirm that the current plan is for 28 Years Later‘s story to encompass not just one or two, but three total films.

Fans will have to wait to see just how large of a role Fiennes’ character ends up playing in the still-developing trilogy’s complete, three-part story.

28 Years Later is set to hit theaters on June 20, 2025.

Alex Welch

Alex is a writer and critic who has been writing about and reviewing movies and TV at Digital Trends since 2022. He was…

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