The 28 Days Later franchise was dormant for years before director Danny Boyle and Alex Garland saw fit to revive it — and the duo seemed eager to make up for lost time. 28 Years Later and its sequel, The Bone Temple, premiered within a year of each other, the first two films in a planned sequel trilogy. Can we expect the third film in this zombie saga to keep to that schedule?
In a perfect world, 28 Years Later Part 3 would hit theaters sometime in 2027, but there’s been no definitive word on where it is in production — or what it will eventually be titled. One would think, after the long-awaited return of Cillian Murphy’s Jim in The Bone Temple, Sony would be fast-tracking the final planned film. Part 3 seems to be in some kind of limbo, perhaps because The Bone Temple made significantly less than 28 Years Later did in its box office run. Is Sony worried about taking a risk with yet another sequel? There’s no telling what the powers that be might be thinking — but Boyle is confident that this trilogy will get its final chapter sooner than later.
Boyle is currently making the rounds with his latest film, Ink; the director appeared at the Zurich Film Festival, where he offered a promising update about the final film in the 28 Years trilogy. “28 Years 3, or whatever it ends up being called, will get made because people keep asking about it,” he revealed. “Quite when I’m not sure, but there’s a script — a very good script by Alex Garland.”
Said script reportedly has “a lot of Cillian Murphy in it,” which should excite fans who’ve been waiting to see the loop close between 28 Years and the OG film, 28 Days Later. Jim returns in the final moments of The Bone Temple, rushing to rescue young Spike (Alfie Williams) and his new ally Kelly (Erin Kellyman) from a horde of Infected. How these characters will interact — or what their next mission will be — is totally unknown to everyone but Boyle and Garland. The director will officially return to helm the final part of this saga, but the question of “when” remains unanswered. Still, it’s nice to know that Boyle is still keen to bring this story home. Part 3 might not get the same accelerated release as its predecessors, but the 28 Years saga will be told in its entirety if Boyle has anything to say about it.
