Before 28 Years Later hits theaters, it’s time to revisit the gritty, haunting world that redefined the zombie genre. From the raw terror of 28 Days Later to the military collapse of 28 Weeks Later, here’s everything you need to remember fast, brutal, and straight to the point.
28 Days Later : How It All Started
It began with a terrible idea: animal rights activists break into a lab and release chimpanzees infected with a virus called Rage. It spreads instantly, has no cure, and plunges Britain into chaos.
Twenty-eight days after the outbreak, a man named Jim wakes up in a deserted hospital in the heart of an eerily empty London. The silence is deafening. He eventually meets two survivors: Selena, sharp and ruthless, and Mark, who doesn’t last long. In this world, hesitation equals infection.
The duo teams up with Frank and his daughter Hannah after hearing about a supposed safe zone near Manchester. But the sanctuary turns out to be abandoned. In a tragic moment, Frank is infected by a single drop of blood.
They’re “rescued” by soldiers and taken to a fortified mansion run by Major West. He offers food and shelter, but his real plan is sinister. He lured survivors not to save them, but to repopulate society… on his terms.
Jim escapes, unleashes an infected soldier on the compound, and chaos erupts. Only Jim, Selena, and Hannah make it out. As they flee into the countryside, a plane flies overhead. Someone is watching.
28 Weeks Later : It Gets Worse
Six months later, the infected have supposedly died off. NATO begins repopulating Britain, starting with District 1 on the Isle of Dogs. It’s heavily secured, carefully monitored… and about to fall apart.
Two children, Tammy and Andy, arrive and reunite with their father Don, who had abandoned their mother during the outbreak. He tells them she didn’t survive, but he’s wrong. The kids sneak back to their old home and find their mother Alice alive. She’s infected, but she’s immune.
Alice may hold the key to a cure. But Don breaks protocol to see her again, kisses her and reignites the outbreak. He’s infected. The virus spreads instantly.
In the chaos, Army medic Scarlet tries to protect the children, believing they might carry their mother’s immunity. Alongside Doyle, a sniper who defies orders, they flee as District 1 collapses. Doyle sacrifices himself, Scarlet doesn’t make it, and Tammy is forced to kill her infected father to save her brother.
In the end, only Tammy, Andy, and a reluctant pilot named Flynn escape. But as they head for France… the virus is already there.
What’s Next: 28 Years Later
So yeah 28 Days Later kickstarted the nightmare. 28 Weeks Later showed how bad it could get. And 28 Years Later? That one is going to be messy.
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