5 questions we have about the next 28 Years Later following The Bone Temple

Ralph Fiennes as Dr. Ian Kelson and Jack O'Connell as St. Jimmy from 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple- Courtesy of Sony Pictures

28 Years Later: The Bone Temple pushed the franchise in exciting new directions under Nia Costa's direction and Alex Garland's script. Ralph Fiennes as Dr. Ian Kelson and Jack O'Connell as St. Jimmy Crystal gave knockout performances. Unfortunately, The Bone Temple had lackluster box office numbers over the MLK holiday weekend, notching $15 million over the four-day timeframe, down from the last movie's $30 million three-day opening in June. However, and thankfully for fans of the franchise, Sony already greenlit the third chapter to the new trilogy.

Here's everything we're hoping to see in the next installment and five questions that deserve answers.

There are major spoilers for The Bone Temple in this article.

How large of a role will Samson/Alpha play in the next 28 Years Later?

Fiennes gave a banger of a performance in The Bone Temple, especially the scene where he pretended to be Satan and danced around to Iron Maiden. As wild as that dance sequence was, and it really was, Fiennes' Dr. Kelson played an even more important role in the movie. He friended an Alpha that he nicknamed Samson, played by Chi Lewis-Parry. As The Bone Temple's narrative unfolds, Samson no longer attacks Dr. Kelson, who offers him drugs, namely morphine, that ease his pain. Eventually, and through Dr. Kelson's elaborate work, Samson recounts some of his memories and recovers his ability to speak.

So, that begs the question: what role will Samson play in the trilogy's third entry? The breakthrough likely means there's a cure; however, Dr. Kelson was stabbed and likely dead by the conclusion of The Bone Temple. Did the potential cure die with him? Is it possible Samson can work to turn the infected back to a more normal state, or at least dull the symptoms so they no longer attack humans? It was great to see Lewis-Parry do more in The Bone Temple than grunt and murder humans by ripping their heads from their bodies. Here's hoping he has a large role in the next movie.

How will Spike and Jimmy Ink's friendship evolve?

Prior to his brutal death at the conclusion of The Bone Temple, St. Jimmy commanded a group of followers named the Jimmies. The only ones (we think) survive at the end of the movie are the young Spike (Alfie Williams) and Jimmy Ink (Erin Kellyman). They run off together in the movie's waning minutes, and Jimmy Ink becomes like a big sister to Spike, even protecting him from witnessing some of the Jimmies' most vicious and sadistic murders.

I, for one, can't wait to see how this relationship plays out. To me, Kellyman was the movie's breakout star, a complex villain who maybe, just maybe will turn good. Will the fact she actually cares about Spike like a family member allow her a redemption arc? That seems quite likely.

How will Spike reunite with his dad?

In 28 Years Later, Spike left his dad Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) behind on Holy Island to take his sick mother, Isla (Jodie Comer), to the mainland, seeking a doctor. It's how Spike met Dr. Kelson. Jamie was MIA for The Bone Temple, but it's likely he'll return in the next installment. What will that reunion be like? How will he react to the fact Jimmy Ink, a Satanist, has been looking over his son? The reunion between Jamie and Spike feels necessary and likely drama heavy.

How will the return of Cillian Murphy's Jim play out in the next 28 Years Later?

Fans were ecstatic to see Cillian Murphy's Jim in the final moments of The Bone Temple, deciding to help Spike and Jimmy Ink, who are chased by the infected just before the credits roll. Jim is, after all, the entry point into the franchise, the bike messenger who woke up in the hospital in 2003's 28 Days Later to an apocalypse. According to recent reports, Murphy is still in talks about just how big of a role he may have in the third movie. Yet, his star power will likely lead to greater ticket sales, so it's safe to assume they'll do everything they can to give him a greater role in the next installment.

Meanwhile, we know Jim is safe and living with his teenage daughter in a cottage. He homeschools her, and then Jimmy Ink, Spike, and the infected show up, forcing Jim into action. I'd especially love to see how the father and daughter interact with the franchise's newer characters, especially Spike and Jimmy Ink, but perhaps Samson, too.

Will the infected be a greater threat in the next 28 Years Later?

While I didn't mind that The Bone Temple was dialogue-heavy and so character-driven, the infected deserve to be a greater threat in the next movie. They were certainly there in this middle chapter, but more so in the background. St. Jimmy and his Jimmies were the true big bads. Yet the infected are still out there, and even if the survivors work on a cure from Dr. Kelson's notebooks, there should be some carnage prior to that point. If the next movie will be the last one, then the infected need to return as the bloodthirsty menace they are.

28 Years Later: The Bone Temple is currently playing in theaters. The next installment has not started filming yet, though Alex Garland will likely return to pen the script.