The28 Years Latertrailer debuted with record-breaking numbers, and it served as a stark reminder of just how extensive Alex Garland’s recent body of work is. The English screenwriter has evolved into one of the most well-respected writers in cinema since his feature debut with28 Days Later, a film that many regard as one of the foundational horror movies of the last 30 years. While he was only involved in rewrites for the sequel,28 Weeks Later, Garland will return to the28 Days Lateruniverse as the primary screenwriter for28 Years Laterand its in-development sequel.
Historically, Garland’s writing and directing projects have been pretty well spread out, typically with at least two years in between movie releases that he’s worked on. However, that cadence changed in 2024, as Garland suddenly became involved with a number of projects seemingly at the same time. Part of that is certainly a result of how successful his projects have been, and as one of the primary creators behind the28 Days Laterfranchise, the upcoming trilogy is certainly taking up a large part of his focus as a writer.
28 Years Later’s Biggest Risk Is Switching Genres After The First Two Movies
28 Years Later’s trailer might look promising, but the movie’s decision to change subgenres after 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later may not work.
Alex Garland Has Been Very Busy This Year
Garland Has Worked On Four Major Projects In The Span Of Just A Year
Alex Garland has acted as both a writer and director since first gaining fame as a novelist. Between 2014 and 2018, Garland rattled off three diverse and highly-regarded movies as both writer and director:Ex Machina,Annihilation, andMen. He returned to the director’s chair once more in 2024 with thedystopian war filmCivil War, after which he declared he would be taking a break from directing. That certainly didn’t mean he would be taking any time off; on the contrary, Garland has had his hands in three upcoming projects in addition toCivil Warin 2024.
2014
$15 million
$37.3 million
92%
86%
2018
$40-$55 million
$43.1 million
88%
67%
2022
Unconfirmed (est. $7-10 million)
$11.2 million
69%
39%
2024
$50 million
$126.2 million
81%
Garland will once again collaborate with director Danny Boyle for28 Years Later, for which Garland will be the primary screenwriter and a producer. While that movie hurtles towards its 2025 release, Garland has already begun the writing and development of the movie’s sequel,28 Years Later Part II: The Bone Temple. With a planned trilogy to lay the groundwork for, the two28 Years Laterprojects were certainly a massive undertaking from a writing perspective.
As if that wasn’t enough, Garland acted as the co-writer and supporting director for Ray Mendoza’sreal-time Iraq War filmWarfare. Mendoza, a real Iraq War veteran, was the military supervisor for Garland’sCivil War, and will step forward as the director ofWarfarebased on his real experiences during the war. While the original plan was for both Garland and Mendoza to direct together, Garland’s wish to step back from directing led him to a more supportive role, with Mendoza taking the lead as director. However, as a primary writer, Garland still had heavy involvement in the movie’s production.
Alex Garland Has Become Hollywood’s Go-To Guy For Dystopian Stories
One of the most common elements of Garland’s various movies is the setting. Many of Garland’s movies are set in the very near future, but it’s almost always a distorted, dystopian version of where humanity might be headed. The28 Days Laterfranchise andCivil Warare perfect examples; one deals with the repercussions of a virus produced in a lab ravaging humankind, while the other deals with a corrupt political regime perverting democracy to the point of a new nationwide conflict.
With the exception of 2022’sMen, which is decidedly a folk horror movie, all of Garland’s feature-length projects have dealt with a dystopian future of some kind. Even his 2010 romantic dramaNever Let Me Gois set in a world where medical breakthroughs have advanced human lifespans to well over 100 years.
Both scenarios are fantastic yet disturbingly plausible, which is a hallmark of Garland’s work. His stories often force viewers to examine the world around them and recognize what elements could lead to the horrific futures depicted in the movies. The concept even follows forWarfare, which is set in the very real past but deals with one of the traits of modern civilization that could lay society low and yield a true dystopian future: war.28 Years Laterwill act as the latest demonstration of Garland’s mastery of this style of story-telling.
