00:00Nearly 23 years after 28 days later they'll define the British horror cinema.
00:05Director Danny Boyle returns with 28 years later, the long-awaited third chapter in the iconic series.
00:11But this time the spotlight isn't just on the infected, it's on the north-east of England,
00:16where much of the new film is set and shot.
00:19Boyle has chosen to root the story in the haunting beauty of Northumberland's coastline,
00:23particularly Holy Island, a place he describes as captivating in a perfect metaphor
00:28for isolation and rebirth.
00:32With its vast open spaces and shifting tides, the island's tidal causeway offered an eerie and dramatic backdrop
00:38that aligns perfectly with the film's post-apocalyptic themes.
00:43For Boyle, the north-east wasn't just a setting, it was a central character.
00:48He's spoken openly about being drawn to the region's raw cinematic beauty,
00:51calling it one of the few places in the UK that still feels truly untouched by time.
00:56In his words, the landscape here looks exactly as they did a thousand years ago.
01:02And that timeless quality plays a vital role in the film's world-building,
01:06set nearly three decades after the rage virus outbreak first consumed Britain.
01:11The sense of abandonment or nature reclaiming the world is visually powerful
01:15and Boyle used to north-east dramatic terrain to bring that vision to life
01:19in a way that no soundstage could replicate.
01:21But the film's ties for the region go far beyond its scenery.
01:26It also celebrates local talent.
01:28Alfie Williams, a 12-year-old from Gateshead, plays Spike, the story's central figure,
01:33a boy raised in isolation on Holy Island, coming of age in a world still scarred by the virus.
01:40Boyle has described Williams as the emotional heart of the movie.
01:43He's joined by fellow north-east actors Harriet Taylor, just 10 years old from Durham,
01:48and 19-year-old Hayley Walters from Newcastle,
01:52both of whom make their feature films debuts in roles that add a local authenticity to the cast.
01:59This regional identity is also preserved in the film's language.
02:03Boyle admitted he was initially nervous about how international audiences,
02:07particularly in the US, would respond to strong Geordie accents.
02:12But to his surprise, test screenings showed viewers connected even more deeply.
02:1728 years later, picks up in a Britain that's still fractured and fenced off.
02:21The story follows Spike as he sets off from Holy Island into the mainland,
02:26a land still under quarantine and crawling with new threats,
02:29from infected survivors to isolated communities,
02:32who've created their own twisted versions of order.
02:35It's a darker, more psychological chapter,
02:38one that builds on the legacy of 28 days and 28 weeks,
02:42while offering something bold and contemporary.
02:45A story that echoes post-Brexit tension,
02:48pandemic recovery, and the harsh cost of survival.
02:52But what do northerners actually think of the film
02:55and the world-building of the north-east?
02:57Do locals love or love the idea?
02:59Do locals love or love the idea?
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