The hype surrounding 28 Days Later, and its upcoming legacy-quel, is a reasonably highly effective focal point on the 2025 film schedule. With what we find out about 28 Years Later ties into Cillian Murphy’s debunked trailer look getting followers to speak about simply how, or when, the long-lasting Jim will return, it’s been a reasonably wild trip.
The thrill has gotten to the purpose the place franchise producer Andrew Macdonald has clarified Murphy’s position within the first movie. What makes all of it funnier is that this reveal could have prompted by a humorous anecdote director Danny Boyle shared about that widespread first look.
Cillian Murphy’s 28 Years Later Position, In accordance To Producer Andrew Macdonald
As a promotion for Empire Journal’s March 2025 subject, 28 Years Later is the quilt story that’s getting used to attract readers into this potential treasure trove. Utilizing the Oppenheimer star’s position on this first entry of a possible trilogy, Macdonald settled the problem with this very attention-grabbing replace from the journal set to hit stands subsequent Thursday:
[On] this, we needed him to be concerned and he needed to be concerned. He’s not within the first movie, however I’m hoping there will likely be some Jim someplace alongside the road. He’s concerned in the meanwhile as an government producer, and I might hope we are able to work with him not directly sooner or later within the trilogy.
Nicely people, there you’ve got it: Cillian Murphy has formally been confirmed to not be in 28 Years Later. I sort of anticipated this form of twist, as bringing again any of our legacy characters is one thing that needs to be completed fastidiously. On the identical time, I’m sort of confused by Andrew Macdonald’s wording above, as it may be seen as sort of complicated in gentle of one other current announcement.
Not too way back, Sony chairman Tom Rothman confirmed the return of Cillian Murphy’s Jim with a brief and obscure assertion. Seeing as Rothman gave his 2024 replace months after Murphy’s 28 Years Later EP gig was revealed, it seems like Andrew Macdonald’s piece of the puzzle is attempting to downplay the rumors surrounding this primary chapter. If solely director Danny Boyle had listened to his girlfriend, this state of affairs may need been simpler to deal with from sq. one.
How Danny Boyle’s Girlfriend Noticed This 28 Weeks Later Dilemma Early On
The second followers thought they’d noticed Cillian Murphy within the 28 Weeks Later trailer was one you possibly can virtually hear world wide. It didn’t take lengthy for the press to place that idea to mattress, because it was finally shared that artwork vendor/mannequin Angus Neill performed the “Emaciated Contaminated” confused for the frequent Christopher Nolan collaborator.
Which leads us to this story involving the Slumdog Millionaire director and his companion’s suggestions on this primary footage:
I confirmed my girlfriend the trailer and she or he stated, ‘Individuals will suppose that’s Cillian.’ I stated, ‘Don’t be foolish.’ I ignored her. So I’ve eaten a little bit of humble pie since.
So what can we take away from this enjoyable flurry of fan confusion? Nicely, whereas 28 Years Later doesn’t have Cillian Murphy on deck, there’s nonetheless an opportunity that 2026’s 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple would possibly. Though judging by Andrew Macdonald’s assertion above, and the seemingly back-to-back nature that noticed director Nia DaCosta shoot that center entry, it might be an enormous tease that’s constructed up for the untitled third movie. Which implies that my huge idea on Jim’s post-28 Days Later life remains to be in play.
In the mean time, you possibly can put together your self for what humanity will grow to be by revisiting Danny Boyle and Alex Garland’s 2002 horror basic, because it’s now obtainable for digital rental or buy. In the meantime, 28 Years Later begins off this story on June twentieth, with The Bone Temple selecting issues up on January 16, 2026.