This article contains spoilers for 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple.28 Years Later: The Bone Temple director Nia DaCosta has clarified whether Samson is fully cured by the end of the film, offering new insight into one of the sequel’s most debated moments. The second entry in the revived 28 Days Later franchise continues the story decades after the original outbreak, expanding the mythology of the Rage Virus and introducing new ideas about the infected.
The Bone Temple continues the story from 2025’s 28 Years Later, with survivors of a catastrophic outbreak uncovering a mysterious refuge known as the Bone Temple. The film sees Dr. Ian Kelson (Ralph Fiennes) attempting not just to pacify the infected but to restore the humanity within them.
Kelson experiments with sedatives and antipsychotic treatments on Samson (Chi Lewis-Parry), the towering infected Alpha previously introduced in 28 Years Later. By the end, Samson appears cured, returning to a more lucid, human-like state in which he can communicate and recall memories from his life while also retaining his new strength and size, and even seemingly becoming immune to reinfection.
Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter about The Bone Temple’s ending and the franchise’s future, DaCosta clarified exactly how “cured” Samson truly is, while being careful not to spoil plans for the next installment. With the third film already in development, DaCosta’s comments help frame Samson’s fate and what it could mean for the future of the 28 Years Later franchise. Read her comments below:
This is so interesting because there’s going to be a third movie. (Laughs.) I was talking to Alex [Garland] about it last night, and I don’t want to say anything that might need to be retconned because I have strong opinions about how I approached it for this movie. But I think I’m good to say that he’s not fully cured, and the level that he is healed is permanent. He’s not what he was [at the start of the movie], but is he one of us? I don’t know. But he’s not what he was.
The biggest twist in The Bone Temple is the revelation that the Rage Virus may be cured, a breakthrough that Kelson ultimately takes to his grave. Drawing on his vast knowledge, Kelson spends much of the film caring for and observing Samson, gradually forming a bond with him.
As the film progresses, Kelson theorizes that the Rage Virus left Samson trapped in a state of extreme psychosis, a belief reinforced by earlier scenes showing Samson attacking what he perceives to be a decayed zombie rather than a terrified person. Rather than viewing Samson solely as a threat, Kelson believes that he is proof that something human may still exist beneath the virus’ effects.
However, DaCosta’s comments signal a future conflict involving the cure and Samson’s new identity. That ambiguity marks a significant evolution in the 28 Days Later mythos. The original 2002 28 Days Later, directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland, redefined the modern zombie genre by introducing the fast, hyper-aggressive infected, a creature born of isolation and rage rather than supernatural forces.
Chi Lewis-Parry as Samson in 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple.Image by InstarImages.com
Looking ahead, Samson’s permanent but incomplete recovery could reshape the franchise’s stakes in the third film, opening the door to infected people who exist in a gray area between monster and human.
If the cure can stabilize rather than reverse the Rage Virus, future installments may explore how the “cured” individuals navigate their new life in their human-like state, but still with the new size and strength brought by the virus.
28 Years Later: The Bone Temple introduces a new qualm within the 28 Days Later universe, one that will open the doors for the next installment to explore moral, scientific, and societal conflicts far more complex than simple survival.
Release Date
January 16, 2026
Runtime
109 Minutes
Director
Nia DaCosta
Producers
Andrew Macdonald, Bernard Bellew, Danny Boyle, Alex Garland, Peter Rice
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Jack O’Connell
Jimmy Crystal
