Danny Boyle Puts 28 Years Later Part III on Hold

The next installment of the 28 Years Later horror franchise has no confirmed production schedule as director Danny Boyle says the project remains on hold. Speaking during a Q&A at the London Film Festival on October 9, 2026, Boyle explained that the planned third film still needs financing and screenwriter Alex Garland's participation, leaving Cillian Murphy's potential return uncertain.

Boyle, who directed the original 28 Days Later in 2002 and returned for 28 Years Later in 2025, has not abandoned the project. However, production cannot advance until the financial backing is secured and Garland becomes available to work on the screenplay.

According to Deadline's coverage of Boyle's remarks, the director described the film's current status in direct terms.

"on the back burner at the moment" Boyle said of the project, according to Deadline.

Garland's schedule is a significant factor because he has written the franchise's screenplays apart from 2007's 28 Weeks Later. He is currently developing Elden Ring, a feature adaptation of the video game for A24, which he is writing and directing. The film is scheduled to arrive in theaters on March 3, 2028.

Boyle previously expressed greater optimism in May 2026, when he discussed the possibility of filming the third installment the following year. He explained that the production's British locations have limited seasonal filming windows, making scheduling a challenge.

"It's set in an area of Britain [where] you can only film in certain times of the year," Boyle said in May, according to Deadline's reporting.

He also explained why the proposed production window had been missed while emphasizing the team's continued interest in the project.

"We ran out of time this year – we literally ran out of time. So it'll be, hopefully, next year. But there's the enthusiasm there, and Alex [Garland] has done a wonderful script for it." Boyle said.

Those earlier comments indicated that filming might begin in 2027, but his latest update offers no confirmed production start or release date. The project remains dependent on financing, Garland's availability and the production schedule.

Murphy's involvement is another unresolved question. He played Jim in 28 Days Later and made a brief, uncredited appearance in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, the 2026 sequel directed by Nia DaCosta. Deadline has reported that Murphy is in talks to return, but no casting agreement has been confirmed in the available reports.

The franchise began with 28 Days Later, which follows Jim as he awakens from a coma to discover the devastation caused by a virus that turns people into violent attackers. Released in 2002, the film earned nearly $83 million worldwide against an $8 million budget, according to the source report.

Juan Carlos Fresnadillo directed 28 Weeks Later in 2007. The sequel grossed more than $72 million against a $15 million budget, according to the same report, before the franchise went dormant until Boyle's 28 Years Later arrived in 2025.

The latest films have also clarified Jim's fate. In The Bone Temple, the story establishes that he survived the outbreak and built a life with his daughter, including teaching her history and politics while occasionally fighting infected attackers.

Although the possibility of a fifth film in the wider 28 franchise remains open, Boyle's latest comments establish no production commitment. The planned 28 Years Later Part III currently has neither a confirmed filming date nor an announced theatrical release date.