We have bad news for the horror hounds out there. Producer Andrew Macdonald has confirmed Oscar winner Cillian Murphy will NOT be returning for “28 Years Later.” That said, it *is* possible he may return in another of the two planned installments.
Since it was announced, there have been rumors swirling that Murphy would have some role in “28 Years Later,” given that he starred in director Danny Boyle’s first installment, 2002’s “28 Days Later.” With Boyle and original writer Alex Garland back for the third installment, fans were convinced that Murphy would be back too. And a corpse that looks A LOT like the actor in the first trailer only added fuel to the fire.
Macdonald was the bearer of bad news and confirmed that Murphy won’t be in the upcoming film. But he is still involved to a degree and maybe in front of the camera in later installments.
“[On] this, we wanted him to be involved and he wanted to be involved,” Macdonald told Empire Magazine. “He is not in the first film, but I’m hoping there will be some Jim somewhere along the line. He’s involved at the moment as an executive producer and I would hope we can work with him in some way in the future in the trilogy.”
Given that Nia DaCosta has already wrapped shooting on “28 Days Later: The Bone Temple,” which is slated to debut in 2026, that could be sooner rather than later. If not, there is always the planned third installment that has yet to begin shooting.
So Who’s The Corpse?
The corpse seen in the trailer is actually Angus Neill. Apparently Boyle’s partner warned him that this would happen. “I showed my girlfriend the trailer and she said, ‘People will think that’s Cillian,’” Boyle said. “I said, ‘Don’t be silly.’ I ignored her. So I’ve eaten a bit of humble pie since.”
“28 Years Later” hits theaters on June 20th, 2025, and you can check out the first trailer below. “28 Years Later Part II: The Bone Temple,” is currently slated for a January 16th, 2026 release. We’ll keep you posted on updates about both projects as they become available.
