The end of 28 Years Later, explained

USA Today

21-06-2025

Crowds are hitting theaters this weekend to once again enter the terrifying world of the rage virus we first met in 2002 with 28 Days Later. Director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland have reunited to take over the third entry in the series -- they were involved in 28 Weeks Later as executive producers only -- and brought their distinct style back to the screen.
WARNING: Spoilers for 28 Years Later ahead!
In 28 Years Later, we meet the inhabitants of Holy Island, a small stronghold off the coast of mainland England that has created a little safe haven from the rage virus. A causeway separates the island from the quarantined area, passable by foot only when the tide is low. Jaime (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) takes his son, Spike (Alfie Williams) onto the mainland to fulfill some sort of rite-of-passage zombie hunting for the young 12-year-old. They, of course, run into some trouble -- to include the seemingly much-evolved "alpha" zombies that are stronger, smarter and faster -- but make it back home (after one of the most intense, heart-pounding scenes in the movie).
During the post-hunt celebrations, Spike catches his dad cheating on his mom, sending the boy spiraling. The mother, played wonderfully by Jodie Comer, has been suffering migraines and bouts of memory loss episodes. Spike then hatches a plan to sneak his mother out to find the rumored Dr. Kelson (Ralph Fiennes) and see if he can't help heal her.
Along their travels, there are many close calls and a couple new friends. They eventually meet Dr. Kelson, who has dedicated his post-apocalyptic life to trying to memorialize those that have lost their lives. It's a truly remarkable look into life and humanity and grief.
Spike eventually lands on a decision to remain on the mainland to try and find himself, but the movie closed with a perplexing sequence that, honestly, ran counter to the vibes and tone of the rest of the story. In the very beginning of the movie, we see a group of children watching Teletubbies as the rage virus starts to spread. One of the boys, Jimmy Crystal, escapes to find his father in the church. Before his dad sacrifices himself to the zombies (he thinks they're sent from the divine), he gives Jimmy his cross and tells him to hide.
We don't see Jimmy for the next hour and 45 minutes or so, but he's hinted at through ominous carvings of his name both in an infected and on a wall that Spike passes. It looks like the movie is wrapping up, but a group of infected starts to overwhelm Spike. Suddenly, Jimmy (Jack O'Connell) appears on a ledge with blond hair and a track suit offering to help. His army of track-suited fighters defeat the infected in a wildly tonally different scene from the rest of the movie.
The costuming of Jimmy and his henchmen seems to reference the disgraced Jimmy Savile, a once-popular television host in the UK. After Savile's death in 2011, horrifying stories of his abusive and predatory behavior emerged, including the sexual abuse of minors.
If you consider the world ended for young Jimmy Crystal in 2002, the vile offenses of his idol Jimmy Savile would have never been revealed. The use of this specific imagery -- the blond wigs and track suits like Savile used to wear -- was intentional by Boyle and Garland. We don't get a lot of information about Jimmy Crystal in this world, it's clear he's not a good guy and someone that should be feared. The idea that even in a world where Savile isn't known for his evil that someone still emerges as evil in his absence is so startlingly dark.
A follow up film, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, is already in post-production. The movie is directed by Nia DaCosta and set to release January 16, 2026. It is supposed to bring back O'Connell, Williams and Fiennes as the story continues.