28 Years Later surprised viewers in a number of ways: It’s an emotional post-apocalyptic story that expands the world of Danny Boyle’s 28 Days Later in truly fascinating ways — and it looks gnarly as hell. But some of the most surprising moments were the elements leading into 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, the upcoming sequel directed by Nia DaCosta and filmed back-to-back with 28 Years Later.
Now, we’re in the surprisingly short six-ish-month window (or, a literal 28-week gap) in between the two, and we’re learning more about who we can expect in the sequel. And one of the best, most intriguing, parts of the first movie will carry over.
28 Years Later featured Infected that have evolved over the decades that have passed since the U.K. fell to the Rage Virus. In the film, we learn that there have emerged “Alpha” Infected, for whom the virus has acted as a kind of “steroid,” making them stronger and smarter than other Infected. These Alphas have taken to leading other Infected in packs, even creating small roving societies. One Alpha, dubbed “Samson,” by Ralph Fiennes’ Dr. Kelson, is super-tall, super-smart, and far scarier than the others. He is the father of the uninfected baby that Spike and his mother save, and he’s hell-bent on retriving his baby. And by the end of the movie he’s not defeated, meaning he could appear again.
Director Danny Boyle revealed to The Hollywood Reporter that Samson will return, alongside Jack O’Connell as “Jimmy Crystal,” the head of a gang/cult of Jimmy Savile impersonators. “The character you saw at the end of the first film, Jack O’Connell, he’s a major character in the second film, with Ralph Fiennes — and the big Samson guy,” he said.
But don’t expect Samson to be the main enemy of The Bone Temple. Sony executive Tom Rothman revealed that the sequel is more than just a zombie movie — it’s more about how evil can spread unchecked even among the survivors. “The next one is much more about man’s inhumanity to man,” he said.
Samson — and his (prosthetic) large endowment — has quickly become the iconic image of 28 Years Later. Could he actually be the poster child of this entirely new trilogy? After The Bone Temple is a still-untitled, not-yet-greenlit third film, and if it comes to fruition it would be perfect synergy to keep this Infected icon around for all three.
