Danny Boyle confirms Cillian Murphy will appear in new ‘28 Years Later’ trilogy

28 Years Later director Danny Boyle has confirmed that Cillian Murphy will be in the forthcoming trilogy.

• READ MORE: Everything we know about ‘28 Years Later’ and its proposed sequels

The third film in the franchise that started with 2002’s 28 Days Later will be released in cinemas on June 20, with a follow-up, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, arriving in 2026. A third movie is also in the works.

The first trailer for this new trilogy was released in December of last year and became the most watched trailer of 2024. It introduced a new cast of characters, including Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes but a shot of a zombie led some to believe Murphy’s character, Jim, may have become one of the infected.

That rumour was later debunked and producer Andrew Macdonald went on to confirm that Murphy won’t feature onscreen in 28 Years Later, but is set to executive produce the film. “We wanted him to be involved and he wanted to be involved. He is not in the first film, but I’m hoping there will be some Jim somewhere along the line,” he explained.

Appearing onstage at CinemaCon convention over the weekend, Boyle showed fans a new trailer for the film and joked that he hasn’t learned much since making the original 28 Days Later. “I still love an apocalypse, British-style,” he said. “I still love the infected. And I still love blowing shit up,” (via The Hollywood Reporter)

He went on to confirm that Murphy will appear at some point in the trilogy, but fans may have to be patient. “Like all good things in life, you may have to wait a little while for him to make his appearance” he teased.

When news of a third 28 Days Later film was first reported, it was said Murphy’s Jim would return “in a surprising way and in a way that grows [the character]”.

Nia DaCosta is directing 28 Days Later: The Bone Temple, having made her name with horror remake Candyman and superhero movie The Marvels. She also appeared on stage at the convention to promote her follow up to Boyle’s film. “While it’s very much informed by 28 Days Later, the script for The Bone Temple is very different,” she promised. “I was able to let my freak flag fly.”

Recently, 28 Years Later writer Alex Garland said he believed The Last Of Us was better than the original 28 Days Later.

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