Danny Boyle’s 28 Years Later thrills critics with chilling action, striking visuals and standout performances from Ralph Fiennes and Jodie Comer as the series returns to the screen
28 Years Later, Danny Boyle and Alex Garland’s long-awaited zombie sequel has hit the screens, and early reviews suggest it was worth the wait.
The film, opening Friday, June 20, has drawn widespread praise for its chilling atmosphere, powerful performances, and daring storytelling.
The film, which picks up decades after 2002’s 28 Days Later, shifts the setting from decimated London to the isolated island of Lindisfarne, where a band of survivors struggles against the spread of the deadly virus. Joining Boyle and Garland on this new chapter is a cast led by Ralph Fiennes, 62, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson, 35. Critics have lauded the movie’s bold vision. On Rotten Tomatoes, 28 Years Later boasts a 94% approval rating from over 90 critics.
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Brian Viner of the Daily Mail declared it “the best post-apocalyptic survivalist horror-thriller film I have ever seen,” adding, “With the terrifying and electrifying 28 Years Later, director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland have delivered something unforgettable.
“That sounds like limited praise, but it’s a more competitive genre than many realize.”
Robbie Collin at The Telegraph awarded a perfect five stars, applauding Garland’s unique blend of humor and horror.
“Garland employs a strain of peculiarly British pulp humour, very 2000 AD, very Warhammer 40,000, to undercut the ambient dread,” he wrote.
“And flashes of Arthurian fantasias and wartime newsreel footage, plus a pointed double cameo for the now-felled Sycamore Gap tree, serve as nudges as Boyle and Garland explore a 21st-century British national myth.”
Ed Potton of The Times echoed the acclaim, praising Jodie Comer’s “impressive as always” performance and describing the film as “perhaps the most beautiful zombie movie ever made. It combines wonder and outlandishness with the regulation flesh-rending, brain-munching, and vicious disembowelment.”
Caryn James of the BBC offered four stars, highlighting Ralph Fiennes’ “scene-stealing” turn.
“28 Years Later is part zombie-apocalypse horror, part medieval world-building, part sentimental family saga, and—most effectively—part Heart of Darkness in its journey toward a madman in the woods,” she noted.
Empire’s Ben Travis also gave four stars, writing, “28 Years Later is ferocious, fizzing with adrenaline. The mainland thrums with danger; when the infected strike, it’s breathlessly tense.”
Not all were entirely convinced.
The Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw gave three stars, describing moments that veer between “deep sadness and bizarre, implausible graphic-novel strangeness.”
The Independent’s Clarisse Loughrey agreed on the score, commenting, “Even if it feels like being repeatedly bonked on the head by the metaphor hammer, Boyle remains a compelling filmmaker.”
Despite mixed notes, 28 Years Later has smashed pre-sale records for a horror release in 2025 and is projected to earn around $30 million during its opening weekend.
