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I was so eager to watch “28 Years Later,” but was let down by its irrelevance to the entire series.

When 28 Years Later, the third installment of the series so popularly called “The 28 Later Series,” was announced in Jan. 2024, I was immensely excited. The first film, 28 Days Later (2002), stands out from other apocalypse films for its distinctive camera angles and ideas not yet used in films of this subject matter. Most of the movie never stopped the action and made its watchers feel on edge, and scared for what was going to happen. 23 years later, in June of 2025, 28 Years Later was released. I didn’t believe the prevalent rumors criticizing the sequel, but throughout watching this film, I clearly should have. 

28 Days Later (2002) begins with a well-known opening scene that follows the eyes of Jim (Cillian Murphy), surviving a zombie apocalypse with little to no information about what is going on. This iconic introduction is what made me ecstatic for the third installment’s release this year, but my expectations for it fell flat.

28 Weeks Later was released in 2007, starring Sergeant Doyle (Jeremy Renner), and further lowered expectations for the third movie. There were so many things to like about this movie, but ultimately, it really irritated and frustrated me. It was full of dumb characters, no plot to go anywhere, and felt very lazy. So, of course, it’s only uphill from here, right?

I loved the opening scenes of 28 Years Later because it truly wastes no time getting right into the action. The movie follows a 12-year-old boy, Spike (Alfie Williams), on a little island. Spike is really the perfect character for a zombie apocalypse movie; he is shy, yet determined, and travels alongside his father, Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson). Spike and Jamie have survived this unlivable world so far. Yet Jamie, whilst taking care of himself, Spike, and his sick wife, teaches Spike how to hunt, gather, and survive alone in this overtaken land. Their father-son connection is somewhat built upon, but eventually is thrown out the window.

Although this movie had potential, it did not really push its limits. After seeing the trailer, I expected jump scares, gore, and the occasional gruesome death or two. Other than a small scare from a screeching bird and an intimidating chase, it really never met any of these usual horror film elements. This shows just how little thought was put into this movie. 

Much of 28 Years Later also felt, without a doubt, gravely unnecessary. Many of the inappropriate camera angles made this movie feel like a joke to me. Some parts that were supposed to add to the story really just felt like a waste of production. 

What I really want to know is how the writers plan to spin this off again. Ending on a “to be continued” just didn’t make sense to me, since there wasn’t much to build on in the first place.

Still, I can’t wait to see 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, scheduled for release in early 2026, given my thoughts on the first one. 28 Years Later felt much like a filler movie meant to build up to its successor, because of how much could have been cut or shortened to avoid irrelevance. I think many people had high expectations for this movie and were let down. I also imagine that the soon-to-be-released movie will not receive much praise, therefore ending the slow-motion downfall of this originally amazing series. A note for the movie writers: Just because the original was great, doesn’t mean there should be more.