Over 20 years after the horror began in28 Days Later, the Rage Virus-ravaged UK is about to return in28 Years Later. And if the new movies does one thing, it has to reverse the dark fate of Cillian Murphy’s Jim. While movie fans may think that Jim’s story ended with his implied rescue at the conclusion of the first movie, it was later revealed thatthings went downhill soon after.
28 Years Laterwill revisit Danny Boyle’s not-quite-zombie apocalypse, where much of the population have beeninfected with the deadly Rage Virus. The movie will follow Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Ralph Fiennes in a terrifying world where the early days of chaos have given way to a new way of living that accepts marauding, homicidal quasi-undead as a fact of life.
But while the movie seemingly won’t star Cillian Murphy (despite early theories that he appears in the trailer as a zombie),it does need to reverse one part of his story.
Cillian Murphy’s Jim Was Executed by the Army
28 Days Later’s Sequel Flipped the Hopeful Ending
28 Days Latergot an official sequel in the 2009 BOOM! Studios comic from Michael Alan Nelson, Declan Shalvey, Alejandro Aragon and various other artists. The comic seesSelena hired by a groupwho want to make an illegal trip to London, needing a guide who has faced the Rage-infected hordes before. The series fills in the gaps between the movie’s ending and28 Weeks Laterdepiction of the UK’s repatriation, revealing that Jim, Hannah and Selena are now famous as the ‘Manchester Three,’ and that Hannah has been adopted and Selena sent to a Norwegian refugee camp.Sadly, Jim hasn’t been as lucky, and is imprisoned and scheduled for execution.
It may strike movie fans as weird that Jim would be arrested, but he does have crimes to answer for. Specifically, Jim caused the deaths of Major Henry West (Christopher Eccleston) and his soldiers after learning they planned to rape Selena and Hannah. Apparently, some word of Jim’s actions got out, andWest’s old friend Captain Stiles has arranged his capture and executionbefore going on to try and capture Selena (who eventually kills him in the comic’s conclusion.)
The comics brought back Jim’s fate from the movie’s original ending, but that doesn’t mean it should stand.
Jim Deserves Better Than His Comic Sequel Fate
28 Years Later Needs to Give Fans Hope
It may seem unfair for the comic to flip the hopeful ending of the movie, buteven in the film, Jim wasn’t originally going to make it out alive. Analternate ending had Jim dieof West’s gunshot, with only Selena and Hannah going on to be rescued. Thankfully, test audiences hated that ending, leading to the happier version fans know and love. However, that ending is pretty irrevocably spoiled if Jim dies, Hannah is torn away from her protectors, and Selena ends up plunging back into the ruined Britain due to her trauma.
Whilefans don’t necessarily need to see these three characters again, refusing to address their story further allows the comic sequel to stand. Ideally, some comment or reference in28 Years Latercan imply that Jim escaped or was released rather than facing a firing squad, reinstating the ambiguous ending of the original movie. While horror movies often have dark endings and kill off their protagonists, the surprisingly hopeful ending of28 Days Lateris part of its charm, and the idea of Jim, Selena and Hannah’s found family braving the further collapse of the world is more interesting than Jim facing a bleak imprisonment and execution.
Part of the fun of the28 Days Laterfranchise is seeing the wider world as the Rage Virus spreads further and further, and while many fans would love tosee Cillian Murphy return, actually getting the star to reprise his role isn’t essential to the franchise. However, the storywouldbe better if28 Years Laterfinds a way to subvert Jim’s dark fate in the28 Days Latercomic, restoring the cliffhanger rather than concluding Jim’s story in such a hopeless way.
28 Days Later
The28 Days Laterfranchise is a British post-apocalyptic horror series that began with the 2002 film28 Days Later, followed by the 2007 sequel28 Weeks Later. It explores a world ravaged by the Rage Virus, focusing on survivors navigating an outbreak of violent, infected humans. The franchise is set to continue with a new trilogy, beginning with28 Years Laterin 2025.
