With 28 Days Later, Danny Boyle and Cillian Murphy reinvigorated fans’ interest in the zombie genre. With its fast-running infected, and character-driven story, the movie influenced a generation of independent filmmakers and big-budget studios. During the pandemic, the movie and its concept returned to the public zeitgeist, and its recent sequels have piqued the audience’s interest. Now, its sequel starring MCU icon Jeremy Renner has found a new home.
28 Weeks Later will be available on Hulu come January 2026, per ComicBook. Directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, the sequel is set six months after the Rage virus outbreak. Britain is declared safe and starts rebuilding, allowing refugees to return, including Don (Robert Carlyle) and his two kids. Things take a turn when the kids sneak out to find their mother and accidentally reintroduce the virus, unleashing chaos as the infected return, and a deadly outbreak rapidly spreads.
The movie was a big hit, earning over $72 million worldwide on a $15 million budget. On Rotten Tomatoes, the critics gave it a 73% rating while the audience rating stands at 66%. While the performances, storyline, and Fresnadillo’s vision were praised, some felt that the movie traded character-driven drama for spectacle. Nonetheless, the movie is a great watch owing to its pacing, scary infected, and immersive handheld cinematography.
‘28 Days Later’ Has a New Trilogy
In 2025, Boyle brought a new installment in the franchise, titled 28 Years Later, which was received with wide acclaim. Written by Alex Garland, it follows a new group of survivors on an island, who face new threats from the virus years later. It introduced a completely new cast, including talents like Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jack O’Connell, Alfie Williams, and Ralph Fiennes. The highly anticipated film was well received by the audience and the critics, earning $151 million worldwide against a budget of $60 million. It also garnered an 89% Rotten Tomatoes rating from critics and another 63% from fans.
The success of the movie spawned a new franchise with a sequel, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, directed by Nia DaCosta, set to release in January 2026. The feature was shot back-to-back with Boyle’s installment and was also written by Garland. But that’s not all. It seems like Sony is feeling pretty confident about the franchise, as it announced a third 28 Years Later movie is also in development. Furthermore, Murphy, who executive-produced the two new films, might return on-screen in the third movie.
Meanwhile, 28 Weeks Later will drop on Hulu on January 1.
- Release Date
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May 11, 2007
- Runtime
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100 minutes
- Writers
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Enrique López Lavigne, Jesús Olmo, Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, Rowan Joffe
- Producers
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Allon Reich, Andrew Macdonald, Bernard Bellew
