Cillian Murphy's 24-Year-Old Horror Franchise Devours Competition on Global Streaming

Cillian Murphy's 24-Year-Old Horror Franchise Devours Competition on Global Streaming Cillian Murphy on the red carpet at the 'Steve' premiere.Image via Lucy North/PA Images/INSTARimages By  Shrishty Mishra Published Feb 17, 2026, 7:10 PM EST Shrishty is a decade-old journalist covering a variety of beats between politics to pop culture, but movies are her first love, which led her to study Film and TV Development at UCLAx. She lives and breathes cinema and sometimes wakes up with the close-up shot of Ryan Gosling's hands playing piano in La La Land, in her head. She has worked with numerous media outlets, including Burda Media (MSN News), DKODING Media, The Voice of Fashion, Hindustan Times, and more. Throughout her career, she has interviewed an array of people, from CEOs and politicians to filmmakers and farmers.   Sign in to your Collider account Add Us On follow Follow followed Followed Like Like Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap

A few filmmakers have contributed to the zombie genre, like Danny Boyle. It can be felt in his recently revived and successful 28 Days Later franchise. Starring Cillian Murphy in the lead role, the 2002 movie brought in the concept of a contagious rage virus that spreads and eventually collapses society. The idea of making zombies more than "brain-eating monsters" proved a big box-office draw and single-handedly revived the subgenre. Over time, it became a cult classic, further influencing future genre favorites like The Last of Us.

The success of the feature spawned a sequel, 28 Weeks Later, starring Jeremy Renner, which continues the story six months later, following a completely new group of people. While Boyle and original writer Alex Garland returned as executive producers, the 73 percent Rotten Tomatoes movie proved to be another financial success, earning $72.3 million worldwide. However, a third installment took nearly two decades to return.

28 Years Later saw Boyle and Garland return to direct and write, respectively, and onboarded Murphy as executive producer. This time around, we follow a boy living in a post-apocalyptic world who undertakes a hazardous journey with his ill mother in an effort to see a doctor. Starring Jodie Comer, Ralph Fiennes, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson, it became a critical and commercial success, earning $151.3 million worldwide on a $60 million budget. It further earned an 88 percent Rotten Tomatoes score from the critics. After capturing the box office, the three movies are now killing the competition on global streaming charts, with 28 Years Later grabbing the fourth spot on HBO, followed by 28 Days Later at sixth and 28 Weeks Later at eighth.

Is '28 Years Later: The Bone Temple' Worth Your Time?

While the latest offering from the franchise, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, directed by Nia DaCosta, did not win big at the box office, earning only $57 million worldwide. That being said, It’s a compelling entry in the franchise, outshining other movies by finding compassion even in dark times. Collider’s Ross Bonaime writes in his review:

"Nia DaCosta and Alex Garland have set the bar high with what could easily be the best horror film of 2026, taking a genre that we’ve seen time and time again and breathing new life into it by focusing on the goodness and charity within humanity right until the film’s very last frame. 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple is a stunning movie that continues to solidify the franchise's legacy as one of the best zombie stories to ever hit theaters."

28 Days Later and follow-ups are streaming on Prime Video. Stay tuned to Collider for more updates.

28 Days Later

Like Follow Followed R Horror Thriller Science Fiction Release Date November 1, 2002 Runtime 113 minutes Director Danny Boyle Writers Alex Garland Producers Andrew Macdonald

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• Cillian Murphy Jim
• Naomie Harris Selena

Sequel(s) 28 Weeks Later Powered by Expand Collapse

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• Danny Boyle

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