Danny Boyle and Alex Garland have finally returned to the28 X Lateruniverse with28 Years Later, skipping the presumed28 Months Laterentirely. The28 Days Lateruniverse began all the way back in 2002 when a successful, but relatively unknown director, named Danny Boyle, teamed up with a novelist named Alex Garland to make28 Days Later. Starring the equally unknown Cillian Murphy,28 Days Lateris an unconventional zombie moviethat trades the living dead for rage-infected humans whose hunger and hatred are indistinguishable.
Despite being a small film,28 Days Latermade a major impact. It helped launch the careers of the three people at the center and has long been held up as a major contributing factor to theglut of fast zombie moviesthat have prevailed in the 21st century. Beyond the monsters it introduces, it’s also an incredibly tight and thrilling adventure through a calamity, with incredible and moving performances from everyone who appears.28 Weeks Latercame five years later, and when28 Months Laterfailed to materialize, the franchise was thought dead. Then28 Years Latercame along.
What Is 28 Years Later About?
28 Years Later Centers On An Isolated Village
28 Years Lateris set, as the title implies, 28 years after the outbreak of the Rage Virus that decimated England, and later moved to mainland Europe. After the initial outbreak, the government in the United Kingdom collapsed, andother countries have either been destroyed or are in lockdown. One UK group has managed to survive by keeping to a small island connected by a heavily defended causeway.
10 Story Predictions For Cillian Murphy’s Return In 28 Years Later
The details surrounding 28 Years Later’s story are still under wraps but one can still speculate how the film will treat Cillian Murphy’s Jim’s return
A father and son from the community are tasked with going to the mainland on a mission, and there, they discover wonders and horrors that they never imagined in their isolated community. Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ralph Fiennes, and Jack O’Connell star while the original film’s lead, Murphy, will not be returning.
Why Isn’t It Called 28 Months Later
Garland Changed The Title When He Brought It To Danny Boyle
Skipping28 Months Laterfor28 Years Latermay seem like an odd choice, particularly as it hasn’t even been 28 years since the original movie’s premiere. The film’s writer, Garland, did want to title the film28 Months Later, tellingIGNback in 2015,
“It’s more likely to be 28 Months than 28 Years. 28 Years gives you one more place to go. 28 Decades is probably taking the piss.”
In Garland’s mind, he had enough time and energy for at least two more28 Days Laterfilms, but as other obligations have stacked up, he’s changed his tune. More recently about the title, Garland said (viaInverse),
“But a few years ago an idea materialized in my head for what would be really 28 Years Later. Danny always liked the idea.”
It seems that time has allowed Garland to accept that his film also needs more time, and28 Months Laterwas simply passed over in favor of the next step in the movie universe’s arc.
How The Time Gap Impacts The Movie
28 Years Later Is A Post-Apocalyptic Survival Film Rather Than A Disaster Film
The title change from28 Months Laterto28 Years Laterdramatically shifts what the film would have been about.28 Days Lateris a disaster film, observing the initial stages of the outbreak and society’s fall.28 Weeks Lateris also a disaster film, with the effects of the virus still reverberating and even getting worse.28 Months Latercould have also been a disaster, post-apocalyptic horror, taking place only a little over two years after the outbreak. By setting the movie almost three decades later,28 Years Latersits firmly in the post-apocalyptic survival genre.
With 28 years having passed since the first film (minus 28 days),28 Years Laterwill be much more about how the world has grown to accommodate the infected.
With 28 years having passed since the first film (minus 28 days),28 Years Laterwill be much more about how the world has grown to accommodate the infected. In that way, it’s likely to be closer in tone toThe Last of Usthan the original28 Days Later. This large time gap will allow for the story to expand more thoughtfully and slowly than in the breakneck first two movies.
