When Will 28 Years Later Arrive In Cinemas?

Twenty-three years after 28 Days Later landed in cinemas, a blockbuster British zombie film is coming to cinemas next year: 28 Years Later. Here’s what to expect, plus when we will be able to watch it for ourselves.

28 Years Later: Plot, Cast, Release Date & More

28 Days Later Cillian Murphy (as Jim) in 28 DAYS LATER. (© 20th Century Fox)

What Will Happen?

Picking up some time after the events of 28 Weeks Later, 28 Years Later returns us to post-apocalyptic England, where the Rage Virus returns to wreak havoc across the nation. Battling hordes of infected, a group of survivors grapple to hold on. Get a glimpse of the action in the trailer below.

The Trailer

How Is It Related To 28 Days Later?

28 Days Later (2002) centres on Jim (Cillian Murphy) who wakes up from a coma in a deserted London hospital, only to discover society has fallen apart after the breakout of a highly infectious disease 28 days ago, which turns humans into aggressive zombie-like creatures. Jim is rescued from an attack by fellow survivors Selena (Naomi Harris) and Mark (Noah Huntley), and the film traces the trio’s journey to safety as they traverse the abandoned land.

28 Years Later serves as a sequel to 28 Days Later and exists in the same universe as 28 Weeks Later. Star Ralph Fiennes revealed some plot details to IndieWire, explaining: ‘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.’ Fiennes plays the doctor in question, with Jodie Comer the ailing mother in need of aid. While we know Cillian Murphy will return to his original role of Jim in 28 Days Later, it’s not yet clear how large of a part he will play in the story.

How Did 28 Weeks Later End?

Picking up 28 weeks after the outbreak of the same disease we see in 28 Days Later, 28 Weeks Later chronicles NATO’s takeover of the UK and attempts to rebuild after the downfall of society. We follow Don (Robert Carlyle), a father who is separated from his children Tammy (Imogen Poots) and Andy (Mackintosh Muggleton). The latter two were out of the country during the outbreak, and are admitted to District One, a heavily guarded safe zone on the Isle of Dogs. As the US Army and NATO attempt to control the spread of the virus, naturally things go awry, and the film ends with zombies spreading around Paris, implying global fallout is on the way.

The Cast

• Jodie Comer
• Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Jamie
• Ralph Fiennes
• Jack O’Connell
• Alfie Williams
• Cillian Murphy as Jim
• Erin Kellyman
• Edvin Ryding as E. Sundqvist

Where Was 28 Years Later Filmed?

28 Years Later was filmed on an iPhone 15 Pro Max in Northumberland in spring 2024. As the central young boy traverses northern England in search of a doctor to help his mother, we can expect to see lots of beautiful natural scenery.

Release Date

28 Years Later will land in cinemas on 20 June 2025.