As our eyes turn more intently towards the upcoming 2025 movies, the dream of the long awaited second sequel to 28 Days Later continues to come further into focus. The first trailer to director Danny Boyle’s latest apocalyptic nightmare was recently dropped, and it’s prompted many theories about Cillian Murphy’s 28 Years Later role.
Some even think they’ve spotted the Oppenheimer lead in the first footage, but that's not true. We now know this, as the actual party on display has stepped forward to debunk that claim.
The Identity Of 28 Years Later’s Infamous Infected Has Been Revealed
That’s totally fair, but I don’t think it debunks my theory of the return of Jim. As reported by The Guardian, the decaying party you saw bearing a resemblance to Mr. Murphy is actually art dealer Angus Neill. Admitting to his part in the latest entry of the 28 Franchise, Neill shared this story about being cast:
Danny [Boyle] told me he’d always had me in mind for the role. So we met up, hit it off, and I agreed to take part.
For the record, the report cited above has Neill credited as “Emaciated Infected,” which totally tracks with the figure in question shown briefly in the trailer. Don’t worry though, as what we know about 28 Years Later hasn’t changed the fact that Cillian Murphy is an executive producer on the three-quel, as well as confirmed to be reprising his role of Jim from 2003’s indie horror blockbuster.
It’s not like we won’t see the Christopher Nolan Repertory Company member in action. Again, we know Cillian Murphy will be in 28 Years Later. The real question at the moment is how the 2024 Oscar winner will be making his grand re-entrance into the hellscape of infected England. Which still leaves the door wide open for my 28 Years Later theory to come to fruition.
Why This 28 Years Later Character Doesn’t Debunk My Theory
In case you haven’t read the theory of Jim’s resurgence in full, the short short version is I think that Cillian Murphy’s character is hiding in plain sight. Furthermore, I think he’s this universe’s version of the boogeyman, in a sort of I Am Legend style twist. After two rounds of chaos with the Rage Virus, anyone could potentially snap - and I think Jim has.
I mean, who else would build a tower of skulls that seem destined to be featured in the Nia DaCosta-directed middle entry of the 28 Years Trilogy? You know, the one that's rumored to have the subtitle "The Bone Temple?" That is not a healthy mind, and we've already seen what it looks like when Jim goes into Beast Mode through 28 Days Later's ending.
With all of those cards on the table, Angus Neill’s “Emaciated Infected” does bear a strong resemblance to Cillian Murphy, especially in his post-coma state in 28 Days Later. You can see that in photos from modeling agency Ugly Models’ Instagram account, as they feature Neill’s unique look in several photographs. So the theory that this vaguely named character is a result of a fever dream that causes an Infected to look like Jim is still in play.
Then again, this could all just be a convenient coincidence. Perhaps Angus Neill’s casting is a result of Danny Boyle having a type when it comes to recruiting actors for his apocalyptic visions. Or maybe there’s something hiding behind this convenient story we don’t know yet?
It’s going to be fun to keep guessing where the truth lies, as the 28 Years Later trailer has given us quite a bit to dissect before its eventual release on June 20th, 2025. Which leads to the unfortunate news that you can’t currently stream 28 Days Later for research, and the physical disc has been long out of print.
However Fangoria has reported that the film will be available on Digital HD, for the first time in what feels like 28 years, at an unspecified point of 2025. So keep an eye for further developments on that front. And if you want to return to the world of the Rage Virus’ vicious hold on society, 28 Weeks Later will be available to stream through a Hulu subscription until December 31st.
