Cillian Murphy will not appear in '28 Years Later'—confirms producer
What's the story
Cillian Murphy, who starred in the lead role in the original 2002 film 28 Days Later, won't be returning for the upcoming sequel, 28 Years Later.
Producer Andrew Macdonald confirmed this in a recent interview with Empire.
Though earlier reports indicated Murphy's involvement as an executive producer and possible onscreen return, Macdonald has now clarified that he won't appear in the first film of this new trilogy.
Producer's statement
'Hoping there will be some Jim somewhere along the line'
Macdonald said, "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 (Murphy's character name) somewhere along the line."
"He's involved at the moment as an executive producer...I would hope we can work with him in some way in the future trilogy."
This indicates that while Murphy won't be onscreen in 28 Years Later, his character's return in future installments is still possible.
New trilogy
'28 Years Later' to launch new trilogy with fresh leads
The next film, 28 Years Later, will hit theaters in June 2025, launching a new trilogy for the beloved franchise. It stars new leads Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes.
Danny Boyle and Alex Garland, the duo behind the acclaimed original film, return as director and writer respectively.
The second installment of this trilogy, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, will be released in January 2026 in the US.
Trilogy direction
'28 Years Later' trilogy to explore new narrative territory
Boyle has revealed the new 28 Years Later trilogy will take "a wholly different approach" than the first two films (including 2007's 28 Weeks Later).
In this new story, the rest of the world remains largely uninfected by the virus, leaving only the UK as its breeding ground.
The first trailer for 28 Years Later dropped in December and quickly became 2024's most-watched horror trailer and second most-watched of all time.