The 28 Days Later franchise is again in a large means, with Danny Boyle’s long-awaited sequel hitting theaters earlier this yr and one other installment, the upcoming 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, already set to proceed the saga on the 2026 film schedule subsequent January. That subsequent chapter comes from Nia DaCosta, and whereas the director says Alex Garland’s script was virtually flawless, she couldn’t resist making one change. And what she requested for has me much more hyped for the upcoming horror film.
Talking on the Edinburgh Worldwide Movie Competition (through The Hollywood Reporter), DaCosta, an exquisite feminine horror director, known as the challenge probably the greatest filmmaking experiences of her profession to this point. She shared with the group:
Making the 28 Years Later sequel was probably the greatest filmmaking experiences I’ve had. One of many points I had with Candyman and Marvels was the dearth of a very stable script, which is at all times gonna simply wreak havoc on the entire course of. However Alex Garland arms you a script, and also you’re like, ‘That is superb.’ You don’t actually have to alter it, though I did, I mainly requested for extra contaminated. [Laughs.] That was, like, my huge contribution.
What actually made 28 Days Later stand out from the pack of among the greatest zombie films wasn’t simply its bleak tone or shaky handheld camerawork, however it was these terrifying, fast-moving contaminated that felt like pure rage come to life. So when Nia DaCosta admits the one factor she requested for was merely “extra contaminated,” it’s a fairly clear sign she doesn’t plan on watering down what followers come for. Danny Boyle’s earlier follow-up already pushed the style into new territory, however with the Marvels director on the helm, it appears like the subsequent chapter goes to lean even tougher into the chaos.
The Candyman director additionally defined what it was like stepping right into a cinematic universe constructed by Danny Boyle and Alex Garland. The earlier movie ends on a cliffhanger, so she inherited some solid members and places from Boyle’s film, however was given the liberty to develop the story together with her personal sensibilities. She continued:
I inherited a tremendous solid, then I used to be given the leeway to solid the remainder of the movie. There have been a few places I inherited. I used to be given the leeway to develop all the opposite places. A few of it overlapped, just like the character Samson — Danny and I’d collaborate a bit on the look, however on the finish of the day, Danny shoots so completely different from the way in which I shoot.
Discovering the proper steadiness between persevering with particular themes and placing her personal spin on issues is admittedly necessary to The Bone Temple. Apparently, DaCosta nearly didn’t take the job. She was ending up her subsequent film, Hedda, which stars Tessa Thompson, and her schedule appeared loopy tight. However then, after an sudden dinner with Jonathan Glazer (the director of The Zone of Curiosity,) she determined to go for it.
Between Garland’s hermetic script, Boyle’s groundwork, and Nia DaCosta’s power (plus her one essential request for extra contaminated), it is clear that 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple is leaning into that uncooked, primal concern that followers love, and I can not wait.