28 Years Later Sequel Director Explains What Really Went Wrong At The Box Office

So, here’s a Hollywood puzzle for you: a sequel that has every critic on its side, audiences leaving glowing reviews, the kind of movie everyone claims to love—and yet, it tanks at the box office. That’s exactly what happened to 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, and director Nia DaCosta is just as baffled as the rest of us.

The Road So Far: The 28 Years Later Projects

Let’s catch up on the backstory. When Danny Boyle and Alex Garland decided to revive the 'rage virus' universe, they didn’t just want a one-off. Nope, they went big: a full-on trilogy, with the first two movies filmed back-to-back. Boyle took the reins for 28 Years Later, then DaCosta jumped in for the follow-up, The Bone Temple.

The initial outing, 28 Years Later, was a box office monster—$151 million worldwide. Critics were practically writing love letters. Cue the sequel: The Bone Temple lands a few months later, everyone seems to love it (reviews and fan scores both sky-high)… and it only brings in $58 million globally. That is not a small drop; it’s like someone cut the power two-thirds of the way through.

DaCosta: 'I Made a Great Film'

Nia DaCosta recently broke her silence, talking to Empire about how bizarre the numbers were. She put it plainly:

'It’s so funny, because literally every barometer we use in the industry to determine whether or not a movie is good, and people like it and want to see it, was through the roof, and yet our box office wasn’t there. I made a great film, and I’m really proud of it, and people liked it.'

It’s not every day you hear a director come out and say, basically: 'We did everything right, what gives?'

Why the Drop-Off?

DaCosta went into theory mode here, and—honestly—her best guess makes a depressing amount of sense. The schedule went like this:

• First film: Blows up at theaters.
• Just a few months later: Sequel drops.

Instead of building anticipation, the back-to-back release might have just left people confused or fatigued. DaCosta said she’d tell people about her film, and half the responses were along the lines of: 'Oh, I saw that last summer.' Her answer? 'No, no, so there’s a sequel!'

Box Office Blues, But No Regrets

Even after seeing the numbers stall out, DaCosta seems to be taking the long view. Disappointed? Sure. But still proud, and hopeful that the movie will find its audience over time.

As she put it: 'I wish it made more money, but I’m really proud of it. When people find the film, they’re going to enjoy the film.'

In Hollywood math, hits and flops are usually pretty easy to explain. Every once in a while, though, a film just gets lost in the shuffle—not for lack of quality, but maybe for timing, marketing, or plain old audience confusion. And that feels like what happened here. If you slept on The Bone Temple, sounds like even the director gets it.