Will Cillian Murphy Appear in “28 Years Later”? All About the Third Installment in the Zombie Franchise — and Its New A-List Cast

It’s been 21 years since the Rage Virus wreaked havoc on the world in 28 Days Later.

Thankfully, fans won’t have to wait much longer to see how much of humanity has survived when the infection returns on June 20, 2025, in the upcoming film 28 Years Later.

Director Danny Boyle and screenwriter Alex Garland teamed up to create the original 2003 zombie apocalypse film starring then-unknown actor Cillian Murphy. Though they only acted as producers on the 2007 standalone sequel 28 Weeks Later (directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, who co-wrote the script with Rowan Joffé, Enrique López Lavigne and Jesus Olmo), The Hollywood Reporter confirmed in January 2024 that Boyle and Garland would be returning for the third installment.

But 28 Years Later isn’t just a follow-up to 28 Days Later, it’s also the start of an entirely new trilogy.

“We’re making, hopefully, three more 28 films with the first one called 28 Years Later,” producer Andrew Macdonald said during the Edinburgh International Film Festival in August 2024, per THR. “Then we’re just about to start, tomorrow morning, actually, part two. And then we hope there’s going to be a third part and it’s a trilogy."

After years of wondering what happened to the original survivors, the news of a third installment left fans with more questions than answers. Here’s everything we know so far about 28 Years Later — and whether or not Murphy will reprise his role as Jim.

What is 28 Years Later about?

Set exactly 10,228 days after a rage-inducing virus escaped from a biological weapons factory and crumbled the foundations of modern society, 28 Years Later follows a group of survivors quarantined on a heavily guarded island in Britain. They, like other small factions around the globe, have managed to find a way to live amongst the infected.

But when one man ventures on a mission into the unprotected mainland, he “discovers secrets, wonders and horrors that have mutated not only the infected but other survivors as well,” per the film’s synopsis. As the ominous tagline suggests, “Time didn’t heal anything.”

One of the film’s stars, Ralph Fiennes, gave a bit more insight into the plot in an October 2024 interview with IndieWire. He said 28 Years Later sees a young boy searching for a doctor to help his dying mother.

“He leads his mother through this beautiful northern English terrain,” Fiennes said. “But of course, around them hiding in forests and hills and woods are the infected. But he finds a doctor who is a man we might think is going to be weird and odd, but actually is a force for good.”

Is Cillian Murphy in 28 Years Later?

The 2003 film starred Murphy as Jim, a bicycle carrier who wakes up from a coma after the outbreak begins. He wasn’t in 28 Weeks Later, but Sony Motion Pictures chairman Tim Rothman confirmed to Deadline in May 2024 that his character will return to 28 Years Later in “a surprising way and in a way that grows.”

Though nothing has been confirmed about Murphy’s role, some fans believe he appears in the film’s trailer as a zombie. As of December 2024, no other cast members from 28 Days Later are reprising their roles.

Which new cast members are joining 28 Years Later?

Several big names are coming to the franchise. Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Fiennes star in 28 Years Later as a trio of survivors fighting for their future.

Comer told Total Film in May 2024 that she was “struck” when she saw the first film in the franchise.

"I remember seeing 28 Days Later and I was so struck with how it was so rooted in reality, and it was more about the exploration of us as a species and our behavior and how we react," the Killing Eve actress said. "It felt like there was a lot of emotional truth within the film that really anchored it. That's also what I felt when I read this script."

Where is 28 Years Later being filmed?

At the Edinburgh International Film Festival, producer Macdonald said all three 28 films will be shot in Northumberland and Yorkshire, two counties in northern England. According to BBC, specific filming locations include Fountains Abbey, Studley Royal and areas inside the Yorkshire Dales National Park, where a “bone temple” set was reportedly constructed.

In a June 2024 interview with Elle, Comer said she was heading to Newcastle to begin rehearsals for 28 Years Later. To prepare for her character’s Geordie accent, the actress watched old clips of English singer Cheryl Cole as a judge on The X Factor.

When will 28 Years Later be released?

According to the movie’s website, 28 Years Later will be released in theaters on June 20, 2025.

The film’s sequel, 28 Years Later II: The Bone Temple, has no release date. However, Fiennes told IndieWire that two of the three films have already been shot and Murphy was seen filming in September 2024.

Is there a trailer for 28 Years Later?

Yes, the first trailer for 28 Years Later was released in December 2024. Set to a recording of Rudyard Kipling’s war poem "Boots" by former silent film star Taylor Holmes, the two-minute long teaser doesn’t give away much of the plot.

But it does ask viewers a haunting question that sets the stage for post-apocalyptic life: “What will humanity become?”

Where can I watch the 28 Days Later franchise?

Though 28 Years Later will be released in theaters on June 20, 2025, at least one other film in the franchise is available to watch now.

As of December 2024, 28 Days Later is not listed on any platforms, but 28 Weeks Later is available to stream on Hulu.

How did 28 Weeks Later leave off?

In 2007, Robert Carlyle, Rose Byrne, Jeremy Renner and Harold Perrineau starred in 28 Weeks Later, a standalone sequel to 28 Days Later with an all-new cast.

The end of the film showed that despite the government’s attempts to contain the Rage Virus in Britain, the infection had spread to the rest of continental Europe.

Not much has been revealed about the plot of 28 Years Later, but there’s a chance the film will explore how the virus continued to spread — and how much of humanity has survived.

Read the original article on People