Cillian Murphy Is Down for a ’28 Days Later’ Sequel With One Condition

Cillian Murphy has been paying his dues in the industry for two decades at this point, and his turn as the titular scientist in Christopher Nolan‘s Oppenheimer gives him the chance to stake his leading man credentials in a blockbuster film for the first time. While he is playing the “father of the atomic bomb,” it was another apocalyptic-style event movie that landed Murphy his first big break.

In 2000, Murphy was cast by Danny Boyle in 28 Days Later, as a man who awakens from a coma to discover an abandoned world that has been ravaged by a zombie apocalypse. The movie was a critical and commercial smash hit, so much so that it spawned a sequel, 28 Weeks Later, in which Murphy did not appear. 28 Weeks Later did not achieve the same level of success as its predecessor, earning only $65.8 million on a budget of $15 million, whereas 28 Days Later garnered $84.6 million on a budget of $8 million. This disparity in financial performance is one of the factors that delayed the production of another sequel. Additionally, Alex Garland, the writer of 28 Days Later was not particularly satisfied with 28 Weeks Later since he was not involved in its creation.

Despite all of this, Boyle and Garland recently confirmed to Inverse that they were having “serious” discussions about a potential return to the franchise, and it sounds like Murphy could be involved with whatever they are discussing. Speaking with Collider’s Steve Weintraub while promoting Oppenheimer, Murphy was asked about the prospects of returning to the series, to which he was very enthusiastic. Murphy agreed that, given his age, a title like 28 Years Later might be the way forward as he confirmed that he would “love to” do the film if Garland and Boyle are involved.

“I was talking to Danny Boyle recently, and I said, “Danny, we shot the movie at the end of 2000.” So I think we’re definitely approaching the 28 Years Later. But like I’ve always said, I’m up for it. I’d love to do it. If Alex [Garland] thinks there’s a script in it and Danny wants to do it, I’d love to do it.”

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What Are Garland & Boyle Planning?

Speaking with Inverse, Garland shared that he, “Resisted [making a sequel] for a long time because there were things about 28 Weeks that bugged me. I just thought, ‘F*ck that. I’d rather try to write a different story in a different world.” He went on to say, “A few years ago an idea materialized in my head for what would be really 28 Years Later. Danny always liked the idea.” While neither creative shared exactly what this idea is, Boyle did add, “[W]e’re talking about it quite seriously, quite diligently. If he doesn’t want to direct it himself I’ll be well up for it if we can execute a similarly good idea.“

With the knowledge that Garland and Boyle are diligently working on a plan and the added confirmation that Murphy has been speaking with them about the zombie franchise, perhaps fans will get that long-awaited sequel after all. Hopefully we won’t have to wait until 2028 for it to happen, to truly play into the 28 Years Later tease.

Oppenheimer is out on July 21. Check out our interview with Nolan below and look for our full conversation with Murphy soon.