28 Years Later: Will there be a new 28 Days Later sequel?
Danny Boyle and screenwriter Alex Garland are reportedly returning for a 28 Days Later sequel.
More than two decades after the zombie film 28 Days Later was released, a sequel is on its way, and potentially even a trilogy of films.
Danny Boyle and Alex Garland, who directed the original beloved zombie classic, are teaming up to make 28 Years Later, THR reports.
Originally released back in 2002, 28 Days Later stars Oppenheimer’s Cillian Murphy as an average bicycle courier called Jim who emerges from a hospital to find London deserted and besieged by a zombie rage virus.
With a number of original ideas including faster-moving zombies as well as an explanation for the origin of the outbreak, the Danny Boyle classic helped revolutionise the zombie genre, paving the way for later takes such as The Walking Dead and The Last of Us.
An action-packed sequel titled 28 Weeks Later was released in 2007, though Garland and Boyle weren’t really involved other than being executive producers, which continued the post-apocalyptic story and was well received by fans and critics alike.
Boyle previously confirmed to NME in 2022 that Garland had penned a second sequel with the working title 28 Months later, describing it as a “lovely idea” that is “again set in England, very much about England". But it never materialised.
Instead, Boyle and Garland are returning to deliver 28 Years Later, and the duo reportedly have plans to launch a trilogy.
Read on for everything we know so far.
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When could 28 Years Later be released? Release date speculation
The film is still very much at a developmental stage and, while Garland and Boyle are attached, a script hasn't been completed yet, meaning it's unlikely to materialise until 2025, if not 2026.
According to THR, William Morris Agency (WMA), which reps Garland and Boyle, is currently reaching out to potential buyers for the new trilogy.
Who could star in the 28 Days Later sequel?
There has been no news on who could star in the new film, but Cillian Murphy previously said he would “love” to do a sequel.
Fans will remember that Murphy’s character Jim was originally killed off at the end of 28 Days Later. But in the end, the scene was deleted and the character ultimately survived.
Responding to The Independent, who raised the news of a potential follow-up to 28 Days Later with Murphy while he was on promotional duties for Oppenheimer, the actor said: “That's great to hear."
He continued: “I didn't know that – I would be there in a flash. I made two movies with both of those guys, and I would love to work with them again. Of course, I'm there.”
So, might Murphy's Jim return after all this time? Fans will have to wait and see.
Meanwhile, behind the camera, Garland will once again write the script while Danny Boyle will return to the director’s chair.
Will there be a new 28 Days Later trilogy?
According to THR, Boyle and Garland want to launch a new trilogy in the 28 universe.
Boyle is already attached to direct the first film, while Garland would script all three. It is currently unclear if Boyle will also helm the planned sequels to 28 Years Later.
Each film would have a budget of up to $75 million range, THR reports, marking the highest of the franchise to date. The first two 28 films were made for $8 and $15 million, respectively.
According to the publication, the goal is to achieve similar success to George Miller’s Mad Max: Fury Road, the long-awaited sequel in the Mad Max franchise, which bagged six oscars after being released in 2015.
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