28 Years Later: A Case Study

January 2025

28 Years Later - Official Trailer

What works

This is a great trailer. The trailer quickly pulls the rug out from under viewers as we hear a joyful tune from the Teletubbies before terror is unleashed on what was supposed to be just another ordinary day in the British suburbs. We quickly move to a visual callback of the original film where the infected are inside a church. This opening segment should effectively spark nostalgia in fans—back to the beginning of the outbreak during the first film. The title cards reading “IT BEGAN 10,228 DAYS AGO,” “DAYS BECAME WEEKS,” followed by “WEEKS BECAME YEARS” then strategically transport viewers through time and now hopefully has fan’s spidey senses tingling.

After this, the trailer is concisely packaged and does an excellent job of setting up the basic narrative of the film: we see a wide aerial shot of an island which then jumps into close shots of watch towers, gates, a causeway, and a town which will inevitably be where the story is centered. In addition, we have another visual callback of the infected coming down from the top of a hill in the English countryside. There are a few shots where the camera and cinematography are unconventional and experimental similar to the first installment.

Although the film was recorded on an iPhone 15, Sony certainly made a big investment into the film which has an estimated $75M budget—larger than the two previous installment’s combined budget of $23M! The music is haunting; the volume increasing as tension builds, and the action and sets become more elaborate in unison. The title card revealing “28 YEARS LATER” with the classic biohazard symbol at the end, chef’s kiss.

Recommendations

I do not think there is anything that doesn’t work per se, but if there’s one recommendation I would make: we need more Jodie Comer. We see her face—clearly—for less than 3 seconds. She is in one frame completely blurred out and upstaged by an emaciated zombie many incorrectly believed to be Cillian Murphy highly anticipated cameo.

Aaron Taylor Johnson and Jodie Comer are two of the most famous UK talent solidifying their place in the industry, landing increasingly higher profile projects over the past few years. Meanwhile, the horror genre has also grown over the past decade and Sony may therefore be leaving money on the table by not adding more exposure to their lead actress. Jodie could potentially garner interest from women and make the film appealing to a wider audience. Her near complete absence is almost perplexing considering Johnson has never been a strong box office draw.

The trailer for 28 Years Later was released on December 10 and Kraven the Hunter starring Johnson as the lead was released 3 days later only to become another box office bomb for Sony’s Marvel films—performing worse than Madame Web!

The underwhelming performance of The Fall Guy in 2024 makes it only more difficult to argue audiences will show up for him. Johnson has notable online popularity, but people do not show up to purchase movie tickets.

Very few stars can pull audiences in simply by their casting: Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Brad Pitt, etc. I believe Jodie Comer has the potential to become a bigger star, she’s only waiting for her breakout moment after her success in Killing Eve and her performance in on the West End. A few years ago Jodie was set for stardom with Blade Runner 2099, but the high-profile project never materialized.

I do not believe making this small enhancement would ignite an online culture war muddying the film, as the past two films had female characters critical to their plots. It is an unfortunate but necessary consideration to have nowadays, but if Johnson isn’t moving the needle, why not cast a wide demographic net and try to entice as many moviegoers to the cinema?

We are 6 months from the film’s release and I expect to see another trailer with either more Jodie and/or story exposition. If it doesn’t, the story is likely being held extra tightly under wraps as a follow up to this installment 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple is already scheduled to be released January 2026. I predict everyone including the IP will win big!

Who the trailer is for

Although the trailer would more than likely appeal to a male audience; this one is undoubtedly for the fans. Similar to myself, I believe the overwhelming majority of audiences will show up to 28 Years Later for the IP. I personally was most excited to revisit the world of 28 and experience another artistically crafted installment from the first film’s director Danny Boyle.

It is unfortunate how the film has almost been forgotten with the passage of time. Luckily, Sony Pictures is making strong efforts to revive the franchise; making 28 Days Later available to purchase digitally for the very first time.

The IP has surely been missed as the 28 Years Later trailer is the second most-watched horror movie trailer of all time behind It: Part Two (2019) which went on to earn $473MM at the box office. 28 Years Later will without question be one of the most anticipated films of 2025!

August 2025

Box Office Performance and Post-Release Reflections

(spoilers!)

28 Years Later grossed $150M worldwide against a $50M budget. $70M domestic and $80M internationally. It’s not bad…but it’s not particularly impressive.

Summer 2025 Traffic Jam

A summer release date never made sense for such a cold, gritty, and dark film. 28 Years Later should have been released between mid-September or early November.

The film came and went—quickly overshadowed and forgotten by a tsunami of huge IP films which would open back to back, cannibalizing one another with no space to breathe.

28 Years Later → June 20th (Sony)

Jurassic Park Rebirth →  July 2nd (Universal)

Superman →  July 11th (Warner Bros)

The Fantastic Four: First Steps →  July 25th (Disney)

Going to the movies is not cheap or affordable, especially considering the ongoing rampant inflation and economic troubles throughout the globe. Releasing blockbusters with enormous $180M+ budgets is seriously financially shortsighted.

Betting big on the wrong people

I’m going to be completely honest and say what we all know to have been proven true: Aaron Taylor Johnson is not a leading man. Johnson has been given endless opportunity to lead but he has consistently failed to bring in audiences or any meaningful box office returns. Aaron Johnson is reminiscent of Taylor Kitsch or Garret Hedlund—echos of an incessant adamance to make them happen when audiences are saying “I’m not interested.”

In addition, studios cannot continue to ignore how Johnson’s private life has greatly overshadowed him both as a person and an actor. The age gap between him and his wife has never stopped being a point of discomfort and scrutiny—especially in a post-#MeToo landscape. A simple social media search on Johnson reveals comment sections completely inundated with discussions on the matter.

The way Johnson is potentially seriously being eyed to play James Bond in the next upcoming trilogy is deeply concerning; it would be another act of Hollywood’s ongoing trend of ignoring the writing on the wall and following through with decisions no one wants.

This isn’t a provocative conversation we’re having, as a matter of fact, Johnson has commented on the matter, but I believe there’s potentially an ongoing unwillingness to acknowledge or discuss it from a business perspective.

I’m not saying to never cast Aaron Johnson again. I’m sure he’s a great guy. He was recently in Nosferatu and did a really good job! I’ll go one step further and say I think he was actually one of the highlights of the film.

While there’s notable online fan conversation for Aaron Taylor Johnson—which is perhaps what repeatedly puts him on the radar for high profile casting considerations—the conversations are almost exclusively centered on his personal life.

Giving Aaron Johnson the opportunity to play one of the most iconic characters in history is a slap in the face to audiences; personal industry relations eclipsing public interest which only fosters frustrations from producers not understanding why audiences do not show up. It is seriously important to have due dilligence for high-profile projects because making bad decisions makes both producers and audiences disillusioned with reality. I know the next James Bond franchise will perform well regardless, but it will be due to the IP Effect.

The IP Effect

Let’s talk Chris Pratt for second…I know this may seem a bit random, but walk with me.

Pratt’s career is very interesting to me. It’s difficult to ignore a few important details which are rarely mentioned in conversation: his box office success is overwhelmingly due to legacy brands and IP with iconic titles such as Jurassic, Lego, The Super Mario Bros Movie, and Garfield.

However, Pratt has undeniably become a bit of a polarizing figure after the 2016 presidential election due to his perceived conservative standing, the openness of his faith, and the infamous call out from actor Elliot Page which was a turning point in Pratt’s public perception. In 2020, he was crowned “The Worst Chris” online.

The follow up installments he lead for Jurassic World in 2022 and Guardians of the Galaxy in 2023 slightly dipped in performance. In my opinion, the numbers are pretty great!

The bulk of Pratt’s more recent projects have been animated features where you do not physically see him, or streaming projects on Amazon Prime—which have been successful, but nowhere to the same degree of notable IP.

Another undeniable truth: Pratt really never made an attempt to appear bipartisan, following many figures and accounts known to make inflammatory statements. Either you don’t care and enjoy gaslighting or like Ted Cruz, don’t know the public can see your online activity. 😬

Check out this reddit post on r/popculturechat regarding the screenshot above.

Most recently he released an op-ed asking for unity shortly before the 2024 election on Maria Shriver’s website which only sparked further criticism. If you’re already in hot water over political matters, I do not know why you’re choosing to enter the lion’s den when the jury’s still out on whether you may be a liability.

The earnings of the films may signal Pratt will not deter a significant portion of audiences from going to the movies for big IP films. On the other hand, you have to consider the franchises he starred in began in his heydays towards the end of Parks and Rec. Anyone crediting Pratt for the success of films from the biggest IP in the world is disillusioned. Pratt’s career moving forward will definitely be interesting to keep an eye on.

This is an unbiased perspective: whether you agree or disagree, love him or hate him, this discourse very much exists, and that’s something anyone would need to be aware of when packaging a film—that goes for all talent.

The Star Power

The final trailer visually affirmed the narrative of the film, and it did not include more Jodie Comer or Edvin Ryding—which is where the star power really was. The trailer is largely selling you an edge of your seat horror thriller experience and not anyone in particular—it’s largely selling the vibe.

Edvin Ryding who plays a Swedish soldier named Erik in the film is coming off the heels of Young Royals—Sweden’s most popular original series on Netflix. Some audiences said Ryding’s character was the best part of the film! Ryding would have been an excellent choice to lead the film. It would be a great opportunity for the actor and the industry to invest in a new generation of young talent who audiences express interest and love for.

Comer and Ryding’s characters are killed off, so we won’t be seeing them anymore, but do not fret. Ryding will be starring in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping alongside a star-studded cast, while Comer is slated to appear in The Death of Robinhood alongside Hugh Jackman and The Last Disturbance of Madeline Hynde with Patricia Arquette.

Critical Reception

The film as I predicted, was a box office best for the franchise, but at what cost? 28 Years Later received positive critics scores but was not received very well by fans. As of August, the film holds a 63% score on Rotten Tomatoes. In addition, some audiences felt they got a different film than the one sold to them. What was promoted as a horor film wound up being a slow-moving meandering drama. While I acknowledge and appreciate the franchise’s artistic and experimental ambition, this was not what the franchise was known for nor how it was promoted. 28 Years Later having subverted expectations while being a build up to another film and a potential third installment is concerning. Plus, audiences waited and waited for a Cillian Murphy cameo which never came and was held on for the second film. I really hope Cillian’s star power after his Oppenheimer Oscar win is enough to entice moviegoers to return.

It’s going to be a challenge getting people back to the movie theater. I highly doubt the follow-up will reach similar feats; it’s a January release on the heels of an incredibly busy holiday season including the monstrous Avatar: Fire and Ash. I want to be proven wrong, a win for the industry is a win for all.