Publication Date: 01-20-2026

28 Years Later: The Bone Temple (2026) review

Dir. Nia DaCosta

By: Steve Pulaski

Rating: ★★★½

In recent history, I’m not sure there’s two back-to-back productions like the first two installments of the presumed 28 Years Later trilogy. The previous film, released back in June, was directed by Danny Boyle, the man behind the original, while the follow-up was directed by Nia DaCosta, famous for the 2021 Candyman sequel. Seeing as 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple picks up almost immediately after its predecessor concluded, with very little time having passed, moving forward with another director for the crucial middle-part in a new era in the series was as intriguing as it was risky.

In addition to multiple cast members, the constant in place is screenwriter Alex Garland (Civil War), who has fully transitioned this series from being about a virulent outbreak to a post-apocalyptic drama revolving around multiple factions in what’s left of society. That’s the logical progression of what happens when days turn to weeks and months become years. The Bone Temple continues to build upon a fantastic foundation, and there’s reason to believe this trilogy, when it’s (hopefully) completed, will be on par with the recent Planet of the Apes series in terms of effectively revitalizing familiar material.

28 Years Later ended with a young boy named Spike (Alfie Williams) crossing paths with a cult leader named Sir Lord Jimmy Crystal (Jack O’Connell). This sequel picks up as Jimmy and his goons (known as the “Fingers,” each having a variation of the name “Jimmy,” train Spike for combat. This is a group of tracksuit-clad Satanists sporting bleach-blonde wigs who hang on every word of their leader, who proclaims he’s the son of a figure known as “Old Nick.” His Father has told him he needs seven “Fingers” to stand bravely by his side, and after battling another Jimmy to the death, it is Spike who becomes the newest and youngest member of this cult. Spike doesn’t feel comfortable whatsoever with his involvement with this crew, but he’s wayward, without his mother. Thankfully, a disillusioned member (Erin Kellyman) of Jimmy Crystal’s gang tries to help him keep his sanity while appeasing their leader enough so he isn’t suspicious.

Meanwhile, Dr. Ian Kelson (Ralph Fiennes) continues to preserve his titular temple, which he erected to serve as an ossuary for those who have died during the outbreak. His newest patient is an infected Alpha he calls “Samson” (Chi Lewis-Parry), a brutish male whom frequents visits to Ian to satisfy his addiction to morphine. Slowly, Samson appears to be regaining his sanity, and later doesn’t even react with violence at the sight of the doctor. This gives the pensive Ian belief that the Rage Virus is indeed curable, although his morphine supply is rapidly dwindling.

These two seemingly staccato plot-threads will converge into a sequence as fiery and as rapturous as anything that’s come before it. Extended time with Ralph Fiennes’ Dr. Ian was always one of the biggest draws to The Bone Temple, and Garland’s writing makes him every bit as fascinating. He’s a quiet catalyst in a noisy, violent world, boundlessly sympathetic and compassionate. The aforementioned sequence should be included on the eventual highlight reel of Fiennes’ career; assuming there’s still room left given all the 63-year-old has accomplished.

Jack O’Connell is downright menacing as a Satanic cult leader. His elongated Irish drawl, cackling laugh, and scowling demeanor make him a magnetic fixture in a movie where inhumanity is rife and compassion is a gesture beyond the realm of comprehension. Where Alfie Williams’ Spike was the focal point of the previous film, he becomes more of a lurking witness to atrocities no child of any ilk should ever see. Even if he takes on more of a supporting role here, he still remains within arm’s length because, of anyone we meet, he shares our gaze of this world the way most viewers will.

Despite rampant amorality, Nia DaCosta paradoxically finds the humanity. It could be Dr. Ian’s bedside manner. Spike’s innocence. Samson’s evolution from feral zombie to a more subdued figure with, dare I say, a future? If 28 Years Later examined family, this is a story that examines the nature of evil, with the shining silver lining being the potential for redemption, which Garland’s script imbues with Samson. If there are seven or eight better horror movies than The Bone Temple to be released this year, the golden age of the genre will continue to roll on at the speed of a train swarming with zombies.

My review of 28 Days Later
My review of 28 Weeks Later
My review of 28 Years Later

Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Jack O’Connell, Alfie Williams, Chi Lewis-Parry, and Erin Kellyman. Directed by: Nia DaCosta.