‘Oppenheimer’ Star Cillian Murphy Joins Danny Boyle And Alex Garland For Sequel ’28 Years Later’
JB Augustine
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Cillian Murphy is set to go from Oscar contention through Christopher Nolan’s lauded biopic Oppenheimer and wend his way back to the series that got his career going in the first place. A third installment of the zombie plague series 28 Days Later is on the way to complete the trilogy, though that won’t be all.
The Hollywood Reporter says Murphy will be back to executive produce, and maybe more, but he is not coming alone. Fellow franchise starters Danny Boyle, who directed the 2002 original, and Alex Garland, penner of the script, will join the Scarecrow actor to kick-start the outbreak all over again.
Boyle is going to direct 28 Years Later from a script by Garland with another new installment after that in the offing. Garland is writing that one, too, but Boyle is reportedly letting somebody new handle directing duties. With films such as Ex Machina, Annihilation, and the upcoming Civil War under his belt, Garland could fill that vacant seat, but we’re only speculating.
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The announcement of the sequel almost as many years in the making as its title suggests comes with an additional wrinkle – a venue change. 28 Days Later and its sequel 28 Weeks Later were Fox Studio productions, but according to THR, Boyle and Garland picked up sticks to move house over to Sony for this one.
When their agency, WME, let the word out among the studios of the project’s gestation, a bidding war ensued that came down to Sony Pictures and Warner Bros. “The idea of having the original creators return to lead a sequel or two had some comparing it to George Miller returning to Mad Max with 2015’s Fury Road,” says THR.
It’s said that the new film and its sequel will likely have a mid-range budget of $60 million. A theatrical release is possible but not locked in yet. Murphy appearing in front of the camera to mark the occasion is likewise up in the air although it seems to be a likelihood.
The actor remarked back in December he is “available” when discussing 28 Days Later at the SAG-AFTRA Foundation’s Conversations. He also revealed he didn’t know he was making a zombie movie at the time.
“I wasn’t too aware we were making a zombie movie, to be honest with you,” Murphy noted via Vanity Fair. “It was right around the time SARS happened and there was all this ‘air rage’ stuff going on. So I never felt it was a zombie film. And I’m glad I didn’t watch the Romero movies because I didn’t realize how hallowed those movies were.”
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