’28 Years Later: The Bone Temple’ Brings Rage Home

The infected may have sparked the apocalypse, but in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, they are no longer the only threat worth fearing. Following its January theatrical release, the latest chapter in the long-running franchise expands onto digital platforms from 3 March, with Sony Pictures Home Entertainment launching the home premiere across the UK.

Directed by Nia DaCosta and written by series architect Alex Garland, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple serves as a direct sequel to last year’s 28 Years Later and marks the fourth instalment in the saga first ignited by Danny Boyle in 2002. While Boyle remains on board as a producer, DaCosta takes the reins here, steering the series into more intimate and morally fraught terrain.

At the centre of the story is Dr Ian Kelson, played by Ralph Fiennes, a former GP who has devoted himself to constructing an ossuary known as the Bone Temple, memorialising victims of the original rage virus outbreak. Kelson’s unlikely bond with Samson, an Alpha Infected portrayed by Chi Lewis-Parry, hints at a disturbing possibility that the virus may not be the immutable curse once believed. As Kelson experiments with sedation and medication, fragments of humanity appear to flicker back to life within the hulking figure.

Elsewhere, teenager Spike, played by Alfie Williams, is drawn into the orbit of Sir Lord Jimmy Crystal, a cult leader portrayed with unnerving charisma by Jack O’Connell. The power dynamics within Crystal’s gang of followers push Spike into a relentless ordeal that tests both loyalty and conscience. In this fractured landscape, survival hinges less on speed and more on moral compromise.

The film, shot back-to-back with its predecessor, features Erin Kellyman and Lewis-Parry reprising their roles, while Cillian Murphy makes an uncredited appearance, reintroducing his original character Jim and setting the stage for the next planned instalment.

Released in January as part of a double bill with 28 Years Later, The Bone Temple has grossed $57.9 million worldwide to date. Though its US opening fell short of expectations, the film earned largely positive notices, with critics highlighting DaCosta’s deliberate, character-driven approach and Garland’s continued expansion of the mythology.

With a third film already in development, the digital release of 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple offers audiences a chance to revisit a world where the line between infected and human has never been thinner.

28 Years Later The Bone Temple is available to buy or rent on digital platforms from 3 March.

28 Years Later: The Bone Temple trailer