28 Years Later: The Bone Temple directly follows 28 Years Later. Sony identifies it as the second part of that new trilogy and the fourth feature in the wider 28 Days Later franchise.
The two counts refer to different groups of films
The first count starts with the 2025 feature titled 28 Years Later. Within that sequence, The Bone Temple is the next film. The other count includes the preceding films in the broader franchise.
When a description uses a number without a title, check which group it means. Sony’s chronology FAQ gives both counts and confirms that the story continues directly after the 2025 film.
| Count | Group being counted |
|---|---|
| Second | The 28 Years Later trilogy. |
| Fourth | The wider 28 Days Later film franchise. |
Kelson and Spike identify the two threads
Nia DaCosta directs the film. Sony’s synopsis connects Ralph Fiennes’s Dr. Ian Kelson to a discovery and places Alfie Williams’s Spike in a new situation with Jimmy Crystal, played by Jack O’Connell.
The doctor’s research and Spike’s encounter identify the two strands of this chapter. If a recap uses the shared outbreak setting without saying which film it covers, use those character details and the full Bone Temple subtitle.
Keep the immediate predecessor by name
For a story continuation, record the preceding feature as 28 Years Later and the follow-up as 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple. That is clearer than referring to the next film by number alone.
Sources and review
- 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple Official FAQs — Sony Pictures Entertainment
- 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple — Sony Pictures Entertainment