By Robert Scucci
| Published 1 minute ago
When 28 Years Later finally saw its long-awaited theatrical release, message boards flooded the internet with the same question: “Where is Cillian Murphy?” His absence sparked debates on whether he would return to reprise his role of Jim, or if that was just a rumor to gin up publicity for the planned trilogy. It’s since been confirmed that Murphy is attached to the project outside of his role as executive producer, and Jim will, in fact, have a significant role in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, as well as the yet-to-be-named final installment.
While I’m excited to see what Alex Garland has in store for Cillian Murphy’s return, I can’t help but ask, “do we really need him?”
We’ve all wondered what Jim has been up to since the initial outbreak of the Rage virus in the 2002 film, but he was just one of countless people who lived through society’s collapse and recovery. His lived experience within this fiction is only a small blip on the screen in the grand scheme of things.
We Already Got Closure On Jim’s Arc
Jim had a complete, satisfying story arc in 28 Days Later, and 28 Years Later was a critical and commercial success without his on-screen presence. The new world being built around the holy island of Lindisfarne, and the desolated mainland just beyond its fortified causeway, is fertile ground for rich storytelling with a new group of survivors on their own separate adventure.
If you ignore the events of 28 Weeks Later like Garland and Danny Boyle seemingly have, it’s reasonable to believe the Rage virus was successfully contained to mainland England, and that some of those early survivors “noped” the hell out of the country in the aftermath, including Cillian Murphy’s character. The theatrical ending to 28 Days Later saw Jim, Selena, and Hanna waving down an airplane after finding refuge in an abandoned cottage. That’s where their story ends as far as I’m concerned.
It Apparently Takes 2 Jims To Tango
28 Years Later hints at Jim’s return through graffiti scattered across the mainland. My first thought was that Jim had been a hidden presence all this time, regarded as a folk hero who stuck around to guide other survivors through the wasteland. That is, until we’re introduced to a grown-up Jimmy Crystal and his cultish goons who dress like Teletubbies and fight off hordes of the infected as if they were Power Rangers.
The epic cliffhanger at the end of 28 Years Later signals a massive tonal and thematic shift for the upcoming Bone Temple installment, leaving no doubt that the next chapter will hinge on both Cillian Murphy’s Jim and Jack O’Connell’s Sir Jimmy Crystal, making it the most Jimmy-centric story in the franchise yet. Instead of pushing into entirely new, uncharted territory, I fear that bringing the original Jim back will keep us living in the past, even as the franchise attempts to build toward a brighter future.
Unnecessary Until Proven Necessary
There’s a part of me that’s beyond excited to see Cillian Murphy reprise his role because he might hold the key to some long-lost knowledge survivors need to keep pressing forward. But there’s also that nagging thought in the back of my mind that he’s being worked back into the saga as a quick and easy way to get asses back in seats.
Considering Garland and Boyle have done an excellent job building out an entirely new world without wasting too much time pandering to diehard fans of the original film, I think The Bone Temple and its follow-up are in good hands. We’re not going to get a cheap reintroduction for the sake of reliving the glory days if there isn’t any substance to it.
Bringing Cillian Murphy back into the mix could be a step backward if the storytelling isn’t handled carefully.
