#Cillian Murphy Would Return for Another 28 Days Later Sequel

Actor Cillian Murphy has admitted that he would welcome a return for a potential second sequel to what many consider to be his breakout role, 28 Days Later. Speaking to CinePOP, Murphy was quoted as saying the following.

“I would never say never. I loved to make that movie. Was a long time ago. But sure [I would like to return].”

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Cillian Murphy is by now known for his starring role in hit TV series Peaky Blinders. He also had roles in Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy – albeit with diminishing returns, between 2005 and 2012. However it was 2002’s 28 Days Later, directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland, that thrust Cork native Murphy into his first major leading role, with the previous body of his work being in theatre productions and small independent films such as On the Edge.

28 Days Later served as something as a much needed kick in the undead for the zombie subgenre of horror movies. Gone were the shambling, groaning zombies seen in George A Romero’s “…of the Dead” films. Boyle and Garland’s zombies were fast. Athletic. Vicious. Able to strike at a moment’s notice; pure jump-scare fuel. While not undead per se (and you can bet that there are to this day, impassioned debates as to whether 28 Days Later qualifies as a zombie movie or a pandemic movie), were humans infected by a fast spreading virus referred to as Rage. The virus was accidentally loosed upon the population of mainland Great Britain, by a botched laboratory raid by well meaning, but utterly unprepared animal rights activists. Those infected by the Rage virus would immediately “turn” descending into an unquenchable homicidal fury, further spreading the virus via biting, clawing and even vomiting infectious blood.

Murphy’s role involved his character Jim, a London courier, waking up in a deserted hospital after an unrelated traffic accident, having being in a coma during the outbreak and waking up, you guessed it, 28 days later. The film charted his journey through the shattered remains of London and further, along with the journeys of the plague survivors he met along the way.

2007 did see a sequel, 28 Weeks Later, directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo – who co-wrote the script with Rowan Joffé, Enrique López-Lavigne, and Jesus Olmo. While a commercial success, the film itself was not quite as highly regarded from a critical perspective as Boyle and Garland’s 2002 film.

Speaking of 28 Weeks Later, it is perhaps of some interest that actress Imogen Poots – who played Tammy in 28 Weeks Later was last year also admitted that she’d be interested in returning for a potential sequel. “Oh, it’s such an interesting idea to think about. It’s weird,” Poots commented. “I think about that movie like a first love because it was really the first foray I had into acting and obviously was lucky enough to be with Rose Byrne and Jeremy Renner.”

Danny Boyle and Alex Garland have been on-again off-again regarding the possibility of a third film. As recently as 2018, Boyle was asked in a Reddit AMA about a potential third 28 Days Later film. Said Boyle, “Kind of, but (I) doubt it will ever happen.”

With 28 Weeks Later ending on an ominous cliff hanger, along with Cillian Murphy’s Jim surviving 28 Days Later, there certainly seems to be scope enough to tell a satisfying story to cap a trilogy. Hey, if it goes well enough, would 28 Years Later be too much to expect? We can but hope.

Topics: 28 Days Later 3