28 Days Later plunged viewers into a dark, post-apocalyptic world plagued by a highly contagious virus that caused those infected to fly into an uncontrollable fit of rage. Although it’s not technically considered a zombie movie, the franchise put a unique twist on the classic genre, and that twist has gone on to influence a wide array of media since the early ’00s.
More than 20 years after the first movie’s premiere, screenwriter Alex Garland (Ex Machina) and director Danny Boyle (Trainspotting) have returned to continue their story.
In Touch rounds up everything fans need to know about the latest film in the 28 Days Later franchise.
What Is ‘28 Years Later’ About?
28 Years Later follows a group of survivors who live on an island in hopes of escaping the deadly rage virus nearly three decades after it was released.
“When one of the group leaves the island on a mission into the mainland, he discovers secrets, wonders and horrors that have mutated not only the infected but other survivors,” the IMDb summary reads.
It is the third installment in the franchise, following 28 Days Later (2002) and 28 Weeks Later (2007). 28 Years Later is expected to be the first of a sequel trilogy continuing the story.
Is Cillian Murphy in ‘28 Years Later’?
The film’s producer Andrew Macdonald confirmed that while 28 Days Later star Cillian Murphy was interested in participating in the third film, and is serving as an executive producer, his character will not appear in this installment of the franchise.
“We wanted him to be involved and he wanted to be involved,” he explained to Empire in January 2025. “He is not in the first film, but I’m hoping there will be some Jim somewhere along the line.”
Who Is in the ‘28 Years Later’ Cast?
The main cast includes Nosferatu actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Jamie, Conclave star Ralph Fiennes as Dr. Kelson, Killing Eve actress Jodie Comer as Isla, Starred Up actor Jack O’Connell as Sir Jimmy Crystal and Solo: A Star Wars Story’s Erin Kellyman as Jimmy Ink.
Was ‘28 Years Later’ Shot on an iPhone?
Ralph confirmed the movie was filmed in part with “an iPhone attached on the back of huge lenses” in an October 2024 interview with Collider.
It’s been reported the exact model was an iPhone 15 Max.
‘28 Years Later’ Trailer
Nearly 30 years after humans were first exposed to the rage virus, a group of survivors have flourished – at least, as much as possible – in a small settlement located on an island that is connected to the mainland by a single road leading out.
But that doesn’t mean they are safe.
Near the beginning of the trailer, a man (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and a boy are seen preparing for a trip. Other shots reveal people who look like armored military being attacked and the infected racing through open fields.
“There are so many dead. Infected and non-infected alike,” Dr. Kelson (Ralph Fiennes) says in an eerie voiceover. Later in the clip, he ominously adds, “There are many kinds of death… And some are better than others.”
Most haunting, perhaps, is the use of Rudyard Kipling’s poem “Boots,” originally written in 1903, which is recited throughout the trailer. The work is repetitive, spoken in an almost musical cadence as if to mimic the endless march of soldiers at war as the characters in the movie are subjected to the seemingly endless dangers of the world that they are forced to exist in.
When Is ‘28 Years Later’ Coming Out?
28 Years Later will premiere in theaters on June 20, 2025.
