"28 Years Later" Trailer Leaves Fans Speculating About Cillian Murphy's Fate

 After a long wait, the highly-anticipated sequel to the horror films 28 Days Later (2002) and 28 Weeks Later (2007) is set to release next summer. Fans are getting their first glimpse of what’s in store with the trailer for 28 Years Later.

Many viewers were quick to notice what appears to be a zombie version of Cillian Murphy’s character, Jim, the bike courier from 28 Days Later, who managed to survive the apocalypse against all odds. In the latest trailer, he seems to appear behind Jodie Comer’s character in a field, looking worse for wear — which, if it is indeed Jim, is hardly surprising given the circumstances.

There had been speculation and hope among fans that Murphy, the Oppenheimer Oscar-winner, would reprise his role in the franchise. However, despite his absence from the promotional posters, he is credited as an executive producer on the Sony Pictures website.

The film stars Killing Eve’s Jodie Comer, The Fall Guy’s Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Conclave’s Ralph Fiennes, all of whom are seen fighting off zombies in the trailer.

28 Years Later is set nearly three decades after the events of the first film, when the "rage virus" that devastated humanity escaped from a biological weapons laboratory.

The third installment follows a group of survivors living in quarantine on a small island, where they have managed to avoid infection. However, when one of them ventures to the mainland on a mission, he uncovers horrifying secrets that have led to dangerous mutations, not only among the infected but also among the survivors.

The film’s tagline reads: “Time didn’t heal anything.”

The trailer opens with a nostalgic reference to the popular children's TV show Teletubbies, which first aired in 1997. A group of children are seen gathered around an old television, as the cheerful theme tune plays in the background — an innocuous yet eerily menacing tone.

The action quickly intensifies with flashes of brutal fight scenes, accompanied by a rhythmic recording of Rudyard Kipling's war poem Boots.

We then see a church with its windows shattered, followed by a sweeping shot of a rural island, where wooden crosses are scattered across the landscape, adorned with rosary beads.

On what appears to be a farm dwelling, graffiti reads: "Behold, he is coming with the clouds" — a verse from the Book of Revelation, Chapter 1. Beneath it, "Jimmy" is scrawled in white paint.

Could this be a reference to Cillian Murphy's character, Jim?

Taylor-Johnson then makes his way through lush green fields, armed with a bow and arrow, while several gruesome scenes flash by — though thankfully, they are hard to fully discern.

A pile of skulls is revealed in the middle of a clearing, followed by a brief appearance of a zombie-like figure, which may or may not be Cillian Murphy's character.

We also see Jodie Comer gently cradling a baby.

On social media, fans quickly began to speculate about Murphy's potential return, with one person joking: "Method acting that would even shame Christian Bale." Others lamented that the brief glimpse of the figure might be a spoiler.

The original 28 Days Later was written by Alex Garland and directed by Danny Boyle, who famously insisted it wasn’t a zombie film, despite its role in helping to revive the genre.

The sequel, 28 Weeks Later, directed and co-written by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, starred Jeremy Renner, Rose Byrne, and Robert Carlyle.

For the third film, 28 Years Later, both Garland and Boyle have returned, also taking on producer roles.

28 Years Later is set for release on June 20.