Ralph Fiennes hints at dark themes in '28 Years Later' sequel

Ralph Fiennes promised a more darker and brutal sequel to 28 Years Later, The Bone Temple in the following year.

The Harry Potter actor starred as Doctor Ian Kelson, a wildly eccentric yet compassionate and kind man, who resides on the mainland amongst the infected. 

Despite the danger of getting infected, he collects bones of the victims who have died from the virus. To honour their memories, he constructs towering shrines of skulls and bones, hinting towards the sequel.

"There's a warmth to him," Fiennes told Entertainment Weekly. "He's very pleased to see people who are not infected."

"Obviously I can’t give too much away,” Fiennes added when quizzed more about the sequel. However he recalled one memorable scene where Isla (Jodie Commer) is helping a pregnant infected through childbirth on an abandoned train.

"I can say that the themes that we touched on in the scene on the train, the moment of labour, the humanity, it is a critical moment in the life of a mother and child," Fiennes said.

"The ultimate human moment is an infected woman who is giving birth to a baby who is not infected."

Fiennes continued to explain his takeaway from the scene, "The theme of innate humanity is it still alive in the soul, in the heart, in the mind of an infected person? Are they completely corrupted? Are they only rabid? Or is there the possibility of something? Something human, it's still there."

The Bone Temples was filmed alongside 28 Years Later but instead of Danny Boyle, it was directed by Nia DaCosta. Boyle also confirmed that 28 Days Later star Cillian Murphy, will reprise his role as Jim.

While the plot for the upcoming sequel is still under wraps, the film is slated for release on January 16, 2026.