Sony Pictures Entertainment has officially dropped the trailer for 28 Years Later, reigniting interest in the apocalyptic universe first introduced in 2002’s 28 Days Later. The newly released footage has already surpassed three million views on YouTube, generating significant buzz ahead of its summer theatrical debut.
Reuniting director Danny Boyle and screenwriter Alex Garland—who last collaborated on the original film—the upcoming installment extends the timeline of the rage virus outbreak to nearly three decades after its origin. 28 Years Later explores a world still under brutal quarantine, where survival comes at a high cost.
The trailer introduces a self-sufficient community that has managed to endure the viral catastrophe by isolating themselves on a remote island. While the location offers protection from the infected, residents must occasionally venture onto the mainland in search of supplies—an act fraught with deadly risk.
Sony’s official description offers more insight into the film’s narrative:
“Academy Award®-winning director Danny Boyle and Academy Award®-nominated writer Alex Garland reunite for 28 Years Later, a terrifying new story set in the world created by 28 Days Later. It’s been almost three decades since the rage virus escaped a biological weapons laboratory, and now, still in a ruthlessly enforced quarantine, some have found ways to exist amidst the infected. One such group of survivors lives on a small island connected to the mainland by a single, heavily-defended causeway. When one of the group leaves the island on a mission into the dark heart of the mainland, he discovers secrets, wonders, and horrors that have mutated not only the infected but other survivors as well.”
The sequel appears to build on the franchise’s legacy of intense psychological and physical horror, while also promising to explore new emotional and moral complexities. With a storyline rooted in isolation, survival, and the mutation of both virus and humanity, 28 Years Later aims to deliver both continuity and evolution within the beloved franchise.
28 Years Later is scheduled to hit theaters on June 20, 2025.
