When a sequel to the 28 Days Later series was announced, some fans might have been skeptical. An instant classic of horror cinema, the sequel, 28 Weeks Later, wasn’t as well-received as its 2002 forebear.
With original movie director Danny Boyle at the helm, however, 28 Years Later proved to be a genuine banger. It stars newcomer Alfie Williams as Spike, a young boy who grew up in the zombie apocalypse.
The film is now streaming on Netflix this weekend, and everyone at Watch With Us couldn’t be more excited.
Here are three reasons why you can’t miss it.
The post-apocalyptic thriller 28 Years Later marks the long-awaited return of the horror franchise with a bone-chilling plot and interesting new characters. Alfie Williams, Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ralph Fiennes and Edvin Ryding lead the cast in the film, which serves as the follow-up to 2002’s 28 Days Later and 2007’s 28 Weeks Later. Cillian […]
It’s Danny Boyle and Alex Garland’s First Collaboration in 18 Years
After disagreements surrounding the release of their film Sunshine in 2007, 28 Years Later creators Danny Boyle and Alex Garland managed to finally patch things up nearly two decades later. The pair reignited a collaboration that first started with their seminal zombie apocalypse film (though neither was part of 28 Weeks Later). Both are filmmaking heavyweights in their own right — Boyle has directed major titles like Trainspotting and Slumdog Millionaire, while Garland pulled up his own director’s chair for films like Ex Machina and Civil War.
Yet the two artists’ joint talents in their partnership are key to making 28 Years Later work, and what made 28 Days Later so phenomenal in the first place. With Garland’s methodical sci-fi writing paired with Boyle’s penchant for a strong emotional through-line, what results is a gorgeous, thoughtful film that is as thrilling as it is tear-jerking.
It’s More Than Just a Zombie Film — It’s an Existential Meditation
While 28 Days Later was certainly an affecting film, fans of the first film may be surprised by just how heady 28 Years Later manages to get. With the arrival of Ralph Fiennes’ character, the ostracized Dr. Ian Kelson, we are introduced to the titular “Bone Temple” of the fourth film’s title. Kelson — having since been made into a pariah by the inhabitants of Spike’s coastal town — is unorthodox in his treatment of the death of both the victims of the infected humans as well as the non-infected.
Instead of leaving dead bodies be, he hangs onto them, their skulls in particular. With these skulls, he creates a monument to both life and death in his Bone Temple, entirely constructed of human skulls. Using the funerary idea of memento mori (“remember death”), the shrine serves as a commemoration to the humanity that once existed within those who became undead, side by side with their non-infected companions, forever.
Ralph Fiennes in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple Miya Mizuno /© Sony Pictures Releasing / Courtesy Everett Collection
Yet during a heartbreaking death sequence, Kelson also reminds us to invoke memento amoris — “remember you must love.” Despite our mortality, there is joy in life. It’s hard not to feel teary just thinking about it.
It’s Cliffhanger Ending Sets Up the Forthcoming Sequel Perfectly
You heard that right — 28 Years Later isn’t the conclusion of a trilogy of films; instead, it’s actually the beginning of a new trilogy. 28 Years Later was shot back-to-back with 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, directed by Candyman’s Nia DaCosta and set to come out in December 2025. Only seven months separate the release of the two films, so fans of the first don’t have to worry about waiting very long to see what happens next after that enthralling cliffhanger ending.
Roughly a month after the events of 28 Years Later conclude, our hero, Spike, is pursued by a pack of bloodthirsty zombies. At the last moment, he is rescued by a cult donning bizarre matching tracksuits styled after controversial British media personality Jimmy Savile — some have jokingly compared the moment to the Power Rangers. I won’t quite spoil it, but at the last moment, a key figure from earlier in the film emerges, played by Sinners’ breakout star, Jack O’Connell.
Stream 28 Days Later on Netflix.