28 Years Later: The Bone Temple (2026) Review

Survivors confront violent factions and evolving infected, forcing hard choices about faith, morality, and what it truly means to stay human in a broken world.

28 Years Later: The Bone Temple (2026) picks up directly after 28 Years Later, continuing the saga in a stark, visceral post-apocalyptic Britain. Written by Alex Garland and directed with precision by Nia DaCosta, the film expands the world of the Rage virus while shifting the focus from pure survival horror into the brutal terrain of human cruelty, cult dynamics and moral fracture.

The lead performances are a high point. Ralph Fiennes as Dr. Ian Kelson again brings depth and quiet intensity to every frame to a story packed with brutality.

Alfie Williams's Spike, whose journey through devastation and exploitation anchors the film's human stakes. Jack O'Connell is chilling as Sir Lord Jimmy Crystal, sadistic leader of a vicious gang - his screen presence heightening the film's tension at every turn. Erin Kellyman as Ink (Kellie) and Chi Lewis-Parry as Samson deliver strong supporting work, rounding out a cast that turns this bleak world into something vivid and lived-in.

The direction from DaCosta is assured and unflinching, guiding a story that is linear in its continuation of Danny Boyle's previous film. With great special effects, and gory setups, the cinematography by Sean Bobbitt gives the film a gritty, documentary-like feel, tangible, on-location realism that makes its violence and terror feel immediate and raw.

While the gang's cruelty can be hard to watch, it serves the story's examination of humanity's darker instincts far more potently than the infected themselves.

The score by Hildur Guðnadóttir anchors the film's mood perfectly and the subtle callbacks to the original 28 Days Later theme, especially in the closing moments, give this sequel a sense of thematic continuity. The soundtrack's integration including Duran Duran and Iron Maiden strengthens the narrative's pulse.

Although the story doesn't return the to the island setting of the previous film, thanks to Fiennes it never loses emotional clout. The Bone Temple grapples with questions of morality, survival, faith and loss, giving weight to every blow and every choice. It sets itself up for the next chapter, pleasing 28 Days Later fans while expanding the franchise's emotional and thematic range. Taken together with 28 Years Later, these two films function as one evolving saga - and this instalment stands as a powerful, terrifying, and unexpectedly thoughtful entry in the series.

Recommended.