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More than two decades after Danny Boyle and Alex Garland masterminded 28 Days Later, they have at last returned.
The much-anticipated 28 Years Later was released in UK cinemas on Friday after being praised by a host of industry critics following early screenings.
Dubbed the ‘best post-apocalyptic horror-thriller I have ever seen’ by The Daily Mail’s Brian Viner, Boyle and Garland assembled a star-studded cast for their latest endeavour.
Ralph Fiennes puts on a ‘scene-stealing’ performance as Dr. Kelson while fellow Brit Aaron Taylor-Johnson is ‘marvelous’ as Jamie, the father of the movie’s young protagonist Spike (Alfie Williams).
But watching the movie’s incredible cast make their debut in Boyle and Garland’s franchise brings back memories of a little-know Cillian Murphy waking up alone in a London hospital some 23 years ago in the original 28 Days Later.
Long before winning his Oscar, Murphy shot himself to stardom with his performance as bicycle courier Jim in the 2002 blockbuster.
It wasn’t just Cillian who went on to enjoy huge success following the original movie, with fellow castmembers Naomie Harris and Christopher Ecclestone too becoming stars.
But as the franchise returns, what became of the rest of the 28 Days Later cast?
MailOnline has all the answers.
Cillian Murphy as Jim
Cillian Murphy got his breakthrough as the lead in 28 Days Later.
He played Jim, a bicycle courier who survived the Rage Virus outbreak while in a coma in hospital – waking up to a decimated London.
The role was actually written for Ewan McGregor, but the Scottish actor turned it down, opening the door for Murphy – a relative unknown.
Three years later, Murphy appeared in the first of a hugely successful set of films with director Christopher Nolan as Scarecrow in Batman Begins.
Speaking to Josh Horowitz for the Happy Sad Confused podcast, the actor revealed that Nolan was convinced to cast him in the role after watching 28 Days Later.
Murphy and Nolan went on to collaborate again a further five times: The Dark Knight (2008), Inception (2010), The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Dunkirk (2017) and Oppenheimer (2023).
World War II biopic Oppenheimer landed it’s lead a first ever Oscar as Best Actor, in one of seven gongs for the movie at the 2024 Academy Awards.
Away from his work with Nolan, Murphy ‘s star rose astronomically as lead Thomas Shelby in BBC drama Peaky Blinders.
Not forgetting his roots, Murphy told The Independent in January 2024 that he would join Boyle’s 28 Days Later Sequel ‘in a flash’ if asked.
However, in 28 Weeks Later, Jim’s whereabouts are unknown, although it is presumed that he survived and is residing somewhere in Europe.
Naomie Harris as Selena
Naomie Harris starred as the female lead in 28 Days Later – Selena, another survivor of the Rage Virus.
She comes across Jim as he is escaping the infected in London and takes him to a hideout in the London Underground.
Like Murphy, Harris was something of an unknown in 2002 and this performance earned her the Black Reel Outstanding Breakthrough Performance Award.
In the following years she starred in Pirates Of The Caribbean and James Bond movies Skyfall (2012) and Spectre (2015) before starring in the acclaimed 2016 movie Moonlight.
She was nominated for Best Supporting Actress at the Oscars, BAFTAs, Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild Awards for her role as Paula in the drama.
Since then, Harris reprised her now-synonymous role as Moneypenny in No Time To Die (2021).
Christopher Eccleston as Major Henry West
Christopher Eccleston was comparatively established in 2002, having already starred in Shallow Grave (1994), The Others (2001) and Our Friends In The North (1996).
The English actor appears in 28 Days Later as Major Henry West – commander of the military unit which takes the protagonists hostage.
Three years after the film’s release, Eccleston took up the daunting undertaking of bringing Doctor Who back to British TV screens for the first time in nearly a decade, but in award-winning fashion.
Although he left the iconic role after one series, he stayed mainly in television, appearing in The Leftovers (2014-2017), True Detective (2024) and 2011 TV film The Borrowers.
Eccleston has also continued to make regular stage appearances, playing leading roles in Hamlet, Macbeth and A Christmas Carol since filming 28 Days Later.
David Schneider as unnamed scientist
David Schneider made his name as a comedy actor in the 1990s, appearing in shows like The Day Today (1994), Mr Bean (1994) and various Alan Partridge spinoffs alongside Steve Coogan.
In 28 Days Later, however, he performed the role of a scientist who worked at the Primate Research Centre where the Rage Virus was developed.
A group of animal rights activists captured the scientist when they freed a captive chimpanzee, letting the infection into the wild.
Since 2002, Schneider’s best-known work has come as a writer, working with acclaimed director Armando Ianucci on The Death Of Stalin (2017).
Noah Huntley as Mark
British actor and model Noah Huntley was 28 when he appeared in 28 Days Later as Mark – who alongside Selena helped the protagonist seek refuge at the start of the film.
Three years later, he appeared as an older Peter Pevensie in The Lion The Witch And The Wardrobe.
In 2012, he starred alongside Kristen Stewart and Chris Hemsworth in Snow White And The Huntsmen as King Magnus.
More recently, he has appeared as Lord Sebastian Alamain in US soap Days Of Our Lives.
Brendan Gleeson as Frank
Another very successful star of 28 Days Later is Brendan Gleeson, who played Frank – a taxi driver who helped fellow survivors escape the infected.
Gleeson had already made strong appearances in Braveheart (1995) and Snapper (1993) before the dystopian horror, but saved his best work for later in his career.
His 2008 appearance in dark comedy In Bruges alongside Colin Farrell and Ralph Fiennes earned him nominations at the BAFTAs and Golden Globes.
The Irish actor won an Emmy for Into The Storm (2009) and also starred in the hugely successful 2022 comedy-drama The Banshees Of Inisherin – again with Farrell.
Megan Burns as Hannah
Megan Burns was only 16 when she played Hannah – Frank’s daughter – in 28 Days Later.
However, the actress left acting after the movie to go into music under the name Betty Curse, releasing the rock album Here Lies Betty Curse in 2006, but no more.
According to her Instagram, Burns is now an ‘artist manager’.
Ray Panthaki as Private Bedford
Ray Panthaki performed a relatively minor role aged 23 in 28 Days Later – as Private Bedford – but has gone on to big things since.
In BBC series Boiling Point (2021), featuring Steven Graham as its lead, Panthaki played Freeman – for which he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the British Independent Film Awards.
The actor was also executive producer of the show, and he has also directed a handful of short films.
