The Rage Virus returns with a vengeance in Sony’s chilling first poster for 28 Years Later, featuring hundreds of tiny skulls forming a blood-red biohazard symbol against a sinister, dark crimson backdrop. The ominous tagline warns viewers that “Time Didn’t Heal Anything” in this long-awaited sequel to Danny Boyle‘s zombie classic. The film, set to hit theaters June 20, 2025, reunites original 28 Days Later director Boyle with writer Alex Garland. Cillian Murphy returns as Jim, the bicycle courier who first awakened to London’s viral apocalypse in the 2002 film, though his name is notably absent from the poster, which features top billing for Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes. Charlie Hunnam has also been left off the initial marketing materials.
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Fiennes recently revealed plot details about the post-apocalyptic Britain, telling IndieWire, “Britain is 28 years into this terrible plague of infected people who are violent, rabid humans with a few pockets of uninfected communities. And it centers on a young boy who wants to find a doctor to help his dying mother. He leads his mother through this beautiful northern English terrain. But of course, around them hiding in forests and hills and woods are the infected. But he finds a doctor who is a man we might think is going to be weird and odd, but actually is a force for good.”
The cast also includes Jack O’Connell, Erin Kellyman, and Edvin Ryding. Previous franchise star Imogen Poots, who played Tammy in 28 Weeks Later, has expressed interest in revisiting her character, who had missed the Rage Virus while on a school trip to Spain. Meanwhile, Comer has been studying Girls Aloud’s Cheryl Cole to master her Newcastle accent for her undisclosed role.
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Garland’s script draws inspiration from unexpected sources. While the original film was influenced by George A. Romero’s Night of the Living Dead series and the 1951 book The Day of the Triffids, the writer has revealed he “ripped off” the 1969 film Kes for this sequel. The film is a raw exploration of the human condition through the story of a hopeless teenager, suggesting a more emotionally grounded approach to the zombie genre.
The franchise’s influence on modern zombie entertainment is undeniable. From Dawn of the Dead to Zombieland, World War Z, Train to Busan, Warm Bodies, and Shaun of the Dead, the original film’s $64,232,714 worldwide success helped revitalize the genre. Its 2007 sequel, 28 Weeks Later, directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo and starring Robert Carlyle, Rose Byrne, Jeremy Renner, and Idris Elba, matched that performance with $65,048,725 globally.
The second installment of the new trilogy, 28 Years Later Part II: The Bone Temple, has already completed filming under director Nia DaCosta (Candyman, The Marvels), with Boyle and Garland returning as writers and Murphy maintaining his executive producer role.
