Making a legacyquel is always a tricky game, especially when following a film that shook up an entire genre decades prior. That’s the situation for 28 Years Later, a direct sequel to director Danny Boyle and screenwriter Alex Garland’s zombie horror hit 28 Days Later. The duo are reteaming for the first time in years, and they’ve found enthusiastic producing partners in Sony Pictures. The star of 28 Days, Cillian Murphy, is also attached as an executive producer, but according to Sony chairman Tom Rothman, the Oscar-winning actor could also reprise his role as Jim.
This May, Rothman told Deadline that Murphy would return “in a surprising way and in a way that grows,” potentially appearing alongside new cast members like Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jodie Comer, and Ralph Fiennes. Speculation has abounded ever since, as Jim’s journey in 28 Days doesn’t exactly end with rainbows and puppies. Multiple endings were written for the 2002 film: one sees Jim succumbing to gunshot wounds, and in another, he undergoes a blood transfusion and essentially becomes a zombie. After poor test screenings, the team chose to end on a more positive note.
