Fans ‘spotted’ the lead actor in the sequel’s promo footage despite him not being listed in the cast

When the first trailer for the major new horror movie, 28 Years Later, was unveiled this week, fans thought they’d spotted the original star of the series, Cillian Murphy, in a very unexpected role.

In one clip, a collection of dead zombies are propped up, like scarecrows, and one bears a striking resemblance to Murphy.

The Irish actor, who won Best Actor at this year’s Oscars for Oppenheimer, played the lead character, Jim, in the original film, 28 Days Later, which quickly became a cult hit when it was released in 2002.

Fan reaction on X/Twitter to Murphy’s alleged cameo in the sequel was mixed, with one person writing: “Oh god finally! Was not expecting Cillian Murphy to come back like that! I’m shook!!!”

However, it has now been reported the actor playing “Emaciated Infected” in 28 Years Later is not the Oppenheimer star but a newcomer called Angus Neill, The Guardian reports.

Neill came to be in the film after he was talent-spotted by the film’s director, Danny Boyle, who was struck by the art dealer and model’s distinctive looks.

“Danny told me he’d always had me in mind for the role,” Neil told the Guardian. “So we met up, hit it off, and I agreed to take part.”

Angus Neill as ‘Emaciated Infected’ in 28 Years Later (Sony Pictures)

He continued: “On set he has an extraordinary ability to hypnotise you, and working with him on the film was a very, very intense experience.”

No prizes for guessing, but the new film takes place 28 years after the first outbreak of the Rage Virus and looks at how the survivors are coping in the infected post-apocalyptic landscape.

The film follows on from another sequel, 28 Weeks Later, which was released in 2007.

Unlike the very first film in the series, which had a modest budget of just £8m, the new sequels have a reported budget of £75m each.

Cillian Murphy in ‘28 Days Later’ (20th Century Fox)

Although Murphy told The Independent in 2023, that he would be keen on returning for the third film, the Peaky Blinders star is not listed as an official cast member in the promotional material but is an executive producer, as per Variety.

Ahead of the sequel’s release, Sony has launched a sign-up page for fans to seemingly be notified when 28 Days Later is available to rewatch online.

This would mark the first time in years the Boyle classic has been available to watch digitally. Currently, the only way to watch the original film legally is by acquiring a secondhand physical copy.

28 Years Later will be released 20 June, 2025.