Cillian Murphy’s Jim playing a villainous role in the 28 Years Later trilogy would cleverly pay off a key scene from the original movie. After years of back-and-forth between director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland, the 28 Days Later story is expanding with 28 Years Later in 2025, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple in 2026, and a potential third movie to complete the set. This new trilogy of not-a-zombie movies will feature a largely new cast led by Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jodie Comer, Ralph Fiennes, and young actor Alfie Williams, but the franchise’s original star is also hovering.

Cillian Murphy will serve as a producer on 28 Years Later, and his onscreen presence in the trilogy has been hinted at, if not outright confirmed. Jim was last seen being rescued by Scandinavian aircraft alongside Selena and Hannah at the end of 28 Days Later, but his fate since that moment remains unknown. Jim’s status after almost three decades of 28 Days Later‘s Rage virus ravaging Britain will undoubtedly stand as one of the biggest questions heading into 28 Years Later, but whether Cillian Murphy’s character is still the Jim audiences remember is another matter entirely.

Why Cillian Murphy’s Jim Might Be A Villain In 28 Years Later & Its Sequels

Is “Jimmy” Cillian Murphy’s Character?

The 28 Years Later trailer impressively gave very little away about Alex Garland’s new chapter, but one noticeable motif was the name “Jimmy” running throughout several different sH๏τs. The name was scrawled in large letters onto the side of a building in one scene, then shown brutally engraved onto a human torso during another. The footage also reveals how Britain has changed since 28 Days Later, and the few remaining survivors appear to have adopted tribal tendencies in the absence of proper civilization, as evidenced by the ominous figure in the creepy mask and the foreboding Bone Temple.

Whoever Jimmy might be, the prevalence of their name suggests they’re idolized by at least one of 28 Years Later‘s survivor groups – inspiring enough devotion for their moniker to be carved into a person’s chest. Perhaps Jimmy is just a cult legend or a story that some of Britain’s stragglers have gradually come to believe. Maybe one central figure who goes by the name of Jimmy is orchestrating the lost souls of Northumberland into doing his bidding. In either case, it is impossible to ignore the correlation between “Jimmy” and Cillian Murphy’s Jim, and with Alex Garland on script duties, the shared name is very unlikely to be a coincidence.

How 28 Days Later Set Up Jim As A Villain

Jim Underwent A Huge Transformation In 28 Days Later

Cillian Murphy’s Jim being the main villain of the 28 Years Later trilogy would certainly not come out of nowhere. Indeed, 28 Days Later clearly set up Jim’s capacity for evil, as well as revealing what could motivate him to take a darker path. In the original movie’s climactic action sequence, Jim shed most of clothes and transformed into a feral hunter who preyed on the soldiers led by Major Henry West, liberating the imprisoned Selena and Hannah. Throughout this sequence, Jim adopted a shocking and animalistic aura, silently stalking, calmly killing, and barely blinking as he rammed two thumbs into an enemy’s eyes.

So wildly different was Jim during 28 Days Later‘s final ᴀssault, Selena mistook him for a Rage virus victim before seeing his eyes. It was a complete and utter metamorphosis from the everyday, humble, out-of-his-depth Jim to a violent survivor protecting his tribe by any means necessary. This stark contrast confirms beyond doubt that Cillian Murphy’s Jim can switch between mild-mannered bike courier to ᴅᴇᴀᴅly killer with amazing ease. More of a slaughter than a rescue mission, Jim’s rampage took no prisoners, showed no mercy, and left no threat alive, and one would expect that frightening streak to have grown even stronger as the apocalypse dragged on.

28 Days Later‘s ending also showed precisely what would push Jim over the edge: the threat of losing Selena and Hannah. The thought of his friends being in danger sparked a one-man rampage against trained military personnel in the original movie. If Selena and Hannah actually died between 28 Days Later and 28 Years Later, Jim’s personality could have flipped completely from ordinary Londoner to savage menace. Importantly, neither Naomie Harris nor Megan Burns – who played Selena and Hannah, respectively – have been confirmed for 28 Years Later, supporting the theory that both characters died and left Jim behind to become twisted and soulless.

Becoming A Villain Would Be The Perfect Ending For Cillian Murphy’s Jim

Better Than His Controversial Ending In 28 Days Later, At Least

In 28 Days Later‘s original ending, Jim switched into his beast mode, then ultimately died saving Selena and Hannah from Major West. This felt like the logical conclusion to his story – accessing a new level of survival instinct that burns so fiercely it ultimately destroys Jim himself. In 28 Days Later‘s final cut, however, Jim survived, and was shown at the end of the movie back to his cheerful self. This conclusion made less sense, as it suggested Jim was able to enter a state of blind rage almost akin to being infected, then simply let it go once the threat had pᴀssed.

Becoming a villain in 28 Years Later would bring Cillian Murphy’s character to his natural conclusion. The 2025 sequel can reveal how Jim suppressed his wicked side for years after escaping London, but was perhaps forced to reignite them whenever new enemies appeared. Finally, after the deaths of Selena and Hannah, Jim gave in fully to his primal instincts and gained a group of cult-like worshipers along the way.

Jim being consumed by what the apocalypse turned him into would fit perfectly with 28 Days Later‘s darker themes – far better than the original movie’s ending, at least. It would then fall to 28 Days Later‘s new cast to provide the story with a source of hope – an emotion every bit as important as rage and grief.