28 Years Later star: 'I'd die straight away in a real zombie outbreak'

Williams sees Spike's childhood as a fairly normal one up until the film picks up. Cocooned in the safe world of the island community, with the threat of the Infected at a remove on the mainland. 'It's just like anyone's childhood. He has friends, he goes to school,' he says. 'But there was training, he would still have to do archery, practice trying to survive the Infected.' He developed a story around the stone pendant his character always wears. 'I always thought that Isla and Spike went down to the beach one day and she picked out a little stone for him,' he explains. 'That's why he holds it so dear to him.'

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Metro

5 hours ago

• Metro

'I'm the 6ft 8in Alpha in 28 Years Later that's haunting your dreams'

'Terrify me.' That was the instruction given to Chi Lewis-Parry by director Danny Boyle in his 28 Years Later audition. 'I didn't really understand what that meant. Like, how do you want me to go about this?' Lewis-Parry laughs. 'But I'm guessing I terrified him good enough!' The actor and MMA fighter didn't know the movie he was reading for initially, it was just 'Untitled Danny Boyle project'. But as he says of the name attached: 'It didn't matter what it was. I could have played a bin bag, and I'd have been happy.' * Spoilers ahead for 28 Years Later!* Lewis-Parry gets rather more than that as he portrays the 'king of the Alphas', Samson, in 28 Years Later – the most feared, and genuinely nightmare-inducing, of the newly evolved strain of the Infected. Over 20 years since Boyle and screenwriter Alex Garland introduced their take on the zombie horror flick to the world with 28 Days Later in 2002, they're back with their hotly anticipated follow up, which was released in cinemas on Thursday. It's not a sequel, but – like the less well-received 28 Weeks Later in 2007, which Boyle and Garland only executive-produced – it's set in the same post-apocalyptic world, ravaged by the blood-born Rage Virus that turned humans into the flesh-eating Infected. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video But, after 28 years and with mainland Britain now under quarantine, new variants have emerged, and the most fearsome of all is the massive Beserker or Alpha. Not only are they bigger, stronger and meaner, but they display intelligence – and also the truly hideous habit of 'despining' their victims. Another variant is the Slow Low, a blubbery and bald creature that crawls on the ground slurping up worms. 'I saw it as you became what you are in your society,' Lewis-Parry tells Metro of the Infected's evolution. 'So if you are an alpha in your everyday life, then you are an Alpha as the infected. The traits and characteristics of the Infected didn't necessarily change from when they were human, but they are fuelled by rage, so control is lost.' We see one Alpha chase father and son Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and Spike (Alfie Williams) down the causeway to their human haven on Holy Island after an educational hunting trip. But Samson, who is so named by the iodine-stained and eccentric Dr Kelson (Ralph Fiennes), gets a little more character development. After we see him take out a patrol of NATO soldiers – ripping one man's skull and spine out and then using it to beat another to death – he announces his arrival in an abandoned train carriage in similar fashion after Isla (Jodie Comer) helps a pregnant Infected give birth. Samson is shown to be more in control of his Rage than normal, aware of his surroundings and clocking the Infected after seeing her feet, leading to an interaction that informed the rest of that claustrophobic encounter between him, Spike and Isla. 'I remember when we shot that, it wasn't on the page. That was something we came up with. Danny just said, 'I want to include something here that shows he is conscious, what do you think?'' 'That's his creative genius is he lets you talk about things because we all inspire each other. There's no ego involved – and he literally just made it up on the day, based off our conversation.' Spike and Isla are then stunned to see Dr Kelson sedate Samson rather than kill him – something which would take as many as 12 precious arrows anyway in a society without guns. Suddenly, he's not just a scary killing machine – especially as Kelson reveals he has spent 13 years tending to the dead among both humans and the Infected alike, building his towering 'memento mori' of their skulls and bones. 'A lot of people would be put off by a person like Dr Kelson, and Jamie even says that he's gone mad, but he's a complicated man, in a very dire situation, and he's also very lonely,' suggests Lewis-Parry, who also played Phoebus in Gladiator II. And as to their characters' unexpected 'sweet relationship', he adds: 'I think in Samson he sees something that is probably more attractive than the humanity that's left, because this is something that's just operating off instincts, not hatred or a dislike for people, it is just existing. I think there's a nice sort of innocence to it.' That's one way of describing the huge naked zombie with wild hair and a long beard, red eyes and a thirst for blood – oh, and near-unstoppable strength. And yes, because everyone will be wondering – the Infected wear prosthetic genitals for both modesty and also legal reasons, due to working with the then 12-year-old Williams (or as Lewis-Parry confirms of the behind-the-scenes processes for the appearance of nudity: 'I never at any point thought I was going to be walking around in the nip'.) But it's not just how Lewis-Parry looks – being 6 ft 8in barefoot helps with the intimidation – but how he moves as an Alpha too that gives him such impact on screen. There's a very neat story behind the first person he explored Samson's physicality with, actor and the film's movement coach, Toby Sedgwick. Sedgwick actually played the Infected priest who Cillian Murphy's confused courier Jim interacts with in 2002's 28 Days Later, when he's trying to work out why he's woken up from a coma to find London abandoned. It was also him who invented the iconic stilted but petrifyingly fast run of the Infected. But Lewis-Parry knew he needed to do something different as he saw his Alpha having 'more control over the state that the infection puts him in, so that actually makes him more dangerous'. 'I felt like it looked like he was trying too hard, and I didn't want him to be trying anything – everything he did was just incidental. So I started to look at legendary movement, people like Andy Serkis, who is, in my opinion, the greatest all time. I looked at how he moved.' Although he couldn't directly copy Serkis due to – in his words – 'how vastly different our sizes are', he knew it was all about intention. 'What was his intention when he was moving, when he was crawling, when he was standing or when he was breathing?' shares Lewis-Parry, who was also inspired by creatures in 1980s and 90s horror movies like Predator and the Wolf Man. '[Samson's] very predatory, but he's not hiding the fact that he's coming after you. He's not trying to sneak up on you or conceal his presence. He's just like, I'm running through this wall, and if you're on the other side of it… The motive I gave him was that nothing will stop me.' And it appears that nothing has yet, as – although Lewis-Parry is very careful about giving anything away regarding next year's sequel, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple , which was shot back to back – Samson is still alive and kicking as a zombie can get at the end of this year's film. More Trending 'What can I tease? There's a part two,' he smiles before hesitating as he picks his next words carefully. 'It's different, it's amazing.' And that's all I'm getting. 28 Years Later is in cinemas now. 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple will be released on January 16, 2026. Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. MORE: Netflix fans devour 'unrelenting' horror movie as sequel hits cinemas MORE: The 'best horror film of 2025' has arrived on Amazon Prime's Shudder MORE: Jurassic World Rebirth embraces hardcore horror: 'I waited for the studio to say no'

ITV News

12 hours ago

• ITV News

Artist to the stars: How one of Wales' finest painters is finally being honoured

With its contrast of light and darkness and its brooding religious theme, "The Devil's Daughter" could have been painted by Caravaggio. When the painting went on display at the Royal Academy in 1917 it caused a sensation and created worldwide headlines. In later years, it is claimed, it hung in the recording studio of rock band Black Sabbath. Now it is owned by a collector from Pontypridd. But the Welsh artist who painted it was scarcely remembered in her home land, until now. On Saturday (21 June), a headstone will be unveiled at the final resting place of Margaret Lindsay Williams - a spot which was previously marked by a simple plaque. Dr Jonathan Hicks, the historian who led the headstone campaign, said it is about time the artist was recognised. "It won't be a sad day, unlike most occasions that take place in cemeteries', he said. 'This is about a celebration of her life.' 'It's about recognising the talent she had. The impact she made nationally, not least on Welsh art.' Margaret Lindsay Williams was born in 1888 in Cardiff but her family soon moved to Barry, where they lived on Windsor Road. She studied at the Cardiff School of Art and later at London's Royal Academy, becoming the youngest student - and the first Welsh artist - to win the prestigious gold medal. An important early work was 'The Welsh National Service at Westminster Abbey'. It took Williams three years to paint and now hangs in Cardiff Crown Court. But some of Williams' early work was more introspective. 'The Devil's Daughter' was followed by two similar canvases: 'The Triumph' and 'The Imprisoned Soul". All depict themes of spiritual conflict and the tension between vice and virtue. Paul Buckland bought 'The Devil's Daughter' from a gallery in the US. 'Not being a religious person at all, I just like the idea of somebody saying 'no, I'm going to go and have fun. I'm not going to go to church', he said. 'But it's also what it represents - a strong feminist painting by a Welsh painter.' From the mid 1920s, Williams concentrated on portraits, becoming one of high society's most sought after artists. She painted King George V, Queen Mary, and - on five separate occasions - Queen Elizabeth II. She was also commissioned to produce childhood portraits of the current King - Charles III - and his sister, Princess Anne. Williams said this process inspired a love of art in the four-year-old Charles - he turned up to one sitting wearing overalls and with a set of brushes. The young Prince even presented her with his own paintings. Williams described them as being 'very modern school,' although she had to ask Charles what the pictures were of - 'a forest' and 'a house' apparently. Alongside her royal work, Williams was also asked to paint other famous faces of her day. Her subjects included Prime Minister David Lloyd George and Ivor Novello, the Welsh composer. She also crossed the Atlantic to paint automobile tycoon Henry Ford and even Warren Harding, the US President. It is reported that Harding sat for her on 18 separate occasions, although the sessions were often interrupted by state business. Williams later said the President had asked her if she had ever been in love, to which she replied: 'Oh, Mr President, I am wedded to my art.' In fact, Margaret never married. She died in 1960 at her home in St John's Wood, London. She was buried in Barry's Merthyr Dyfan cemetery but until now, there has been no permanent marker of her final resting place. 'I thought it really didn't seem fair that this woman was lying in an unmarked plot in Barry cemetery', said Dr Hicks. 'I went away and mused on it for a while and spent some time researching her life, found it to be absolutely fascinating, and then decided that I would launch a fundraising appeal.' The appeal raised more than £2,000 and saw a headstone created by CJ Ball memorial masons of Barry. It will be unveiled at a special ceremony on Saturday - in the week marking Williams' birthday. Barry's mayor will be among those present, together with six members of the artist's family, who have travelled over from Canada. It is a fitting tribute to one of Barry 's greatest daughters. A painter of monarchs and presidents who never forgot her roots.

Time Out

a day ago

• Time Out

Where was ‘28 Years Later' filmed? The locations behind Danny Boyle's zombie sequel

It has been more than two decades since director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland unleashed sprinting zombies on the world with 28 Days Later. That film's gnarly opening with Cillian Murphy wandering around empty streets of London still caters to our apocalyptic, past-pandemic anxieties. Now, the duo reunites for 28 Years Later, replacing urban decay with guerrilla warfare in the forests. What is 28 Years Later about? Set nearly three decades after the Rage virus outbreak, 28 Years Later follows a band of survivors who have set base on a windswept tidal island. But when seasoned scavenger Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), his preteen son Spike (Alfie Williams), and, later, mum Isla (Jodie Comer) embark on a journey to the mainland, they get exposed to the true extent of the infected. Where was 28 Years Later filmed? If the first film found Boyle's crew using Canon digital camcorders to capture action in concrete dystopias, 28 Years Later relies on an inventory of iPhone 15s and drones capturing the Gothic ruins and forested interiors of north eastern England. Expect sleepy parishes, Gothic monasteries, mist-shrouded forests, and the towering lines of the bone temples. Where is the Bone Temple located? An intriguing attraction of 28 Years Later is the Bone Temple site, a grim wasteland marked by pillars of human bones and skulls that carry ritual importance for the survivors. These stacks of bones were meticulously arranged at Redmire, a village and civil parish in North Yorkshire. Production designer Carson McColl added that after scouting several locations, the team settled for Redmire because 'there was something about that location that felt that it's remained unchanged for a long, long time'. Construction of this bony monument took no less than six months, with the production design team using over 250,000 replica bones and 5,500 skulls. Is the island in 28 Years Later real? The centre of the action is the remote island that harbours survivors like Jame and Spike. Much like the survivors in A Quiet Place and the Seraphite community in the new season of The Last of Us, these islanders are always on the lookout for any potential outsider attacks. They also have their own set of cultish post-apocalyptic rituals and customs, which makes the island's real-life setting all the more crucial. The island in 28 Years Later is Lindisfarne, also known as Holy Island, which lies off the coast of Northumberland. Lindisfarne's recorded history dates back to the 6th century AD when it emerged as an important centre of celtic Christianity in Britain. Before the clash between zombies and survivors, the island bore witness to Viking invasions and the Norman conquest of England. While CGI was used to recreate aerial views of Holy Island, most of the film's island sequences were shot on location. Kielder Forest, Northumberland As the survivors move from the island to the mainland, 28 Years Later is heavy on some fast-paced forest action. The 250-square-mile Kielder Forest stood in to provide some dense foliage for such scenes. Dotted with conifer trees and one of the UK's largest artificial reservoirs, the forest's Northumberland location makes it conveniently near Holy Island. Sycamore Gap The historical Sycamore Gap tree also features in two scenes, either filmed before its illegal felling in 2023 or recreated with CGI help. The 150-year-old tree was a legendary symbol of the north east, enamouring the country's photographers and filmmakers for decades. Dramatically standing next to Hadrian's Wall, the tree featured in Kevin Costner's Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, leading to it being nicknamed the Robin Hood tree. The tree stump, which experts estimate will take 150 years to return to its former glory, is immortalised in 28 Years Later. The Sycamore Gap's presence remains tragically ironic in a dystopian film, especially one that runs with the tagline: 'Time didn't heal anything.' Cheddar Gorge This serenely historical Somerset gorge is the location used for the polarising final scenes. Cheddar Gorge's inclusion in a film about forest survival and Bone Temples seems apt, given this is where archaeologists discovered Britain's oldest human skeleton. 'Cheddar Man' is estimated to be 9,000 years old. Other atmospherically haunting attractions include narrow stalactite caves and many more bones over 12,000 years ago. Lord of the Rings fans also flock here for good reason, as the Gorge's caves inspired the Glittering Caves of Helm's Deep. Where else was 28 Years Later filmed? 28 Years Later also filmed in Northumberland villages and parishes like Bellingham and Rothbury, the North Yorkshire parishes of Melsonby and Ripon, Newcastle upon Tyne, and Waskerley in County Durham. Other locations include the 12th-century monastery Fountains Abbey in North Yorkshire, and the Aysgarth Falls, a set of waterfalls carved by the River Ure. Who stars in 28 Years Later? Apart from Aaron Taylor-Johnson and newcomer Alfie Williams starring as Jamie and his son Spike, 28 Years Later boasts an ensemble cast spearheaded by Ralph Fiennes and Jodie Comer. Fiennes plays outbreak survivor Dr Ian Kelson, while Comer is Isla, Jamie's wife, who is suffering from an unknown illness. Fresh off his acclaimed turn as an Irish vampire in Sinners, Jack O'Connell also stars as Sir Jim Crystal, the eccentric leader of the self-titled cult 'Jimmies'. Erin Kellyman (The Falcon and the Winter Soldier) and Emma Laird (The Brutalist) play other members of Crystal's cult. Swedish actor Edvin Ryding (Young Royals) features as a NATO soldier washed up on the British mainland. When is 28 Years Later released? It's out in UK, Ireland and Australian cinemas now, and released in US theatres on June 20. Read our review here.