Could ’28 Years Later’ contend for Oscars? Here’s the complete awards history of the ’28’ franchise.

The most frightening zombies to ever appear on the big screen are back, and faster than ever. But can they run all the way to the 2026 Oscars?

Set almost three decades after 28 Days Later (2003) and 28 Weeks Later (2007), the first two films in Alex Garland's horror franchise, 28 Years Later is scheduled for a theatrical release on June 20. Garland is back as the writer and Danny Boyle, who directed the first flick, returns to direct. (Juan Carlos Fresnadillo directed and cowrote the sequel.) The latest trailer (below) dropped this morning.

The new movie stars Jodie Comer as Isla, a pregnant woman; Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Jamie, a scavenger and Isla's husband; and Ralph Fiennes as Dr. Kelson, a knowledgable fellow survivor. The plot follows a group of people who've avoided zombie attacks for decades by living on an isolated island. When one member goes to the mainland, he discovers that the monsters — as well as the human survivors — have mutated.

Neither of the first two films was recognized at the Oscars, though they did contend at other awards shows. The good news? Horror movies like 28 Years Later occasionally do receive Academy Award nominations, particularly in the craft categories, suggesting Oscar voters aren't too afraid of the genre.

Earlier this year, The Substance (2024) received five overall bids: Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay for Coralie Fargeat, Best Actress for Demi Moore, and Best Makeup and Hairstyling; it won the latter. Moore starred as an aging Hollywood star named Elisabeth Sparkle who, in an effort to stay relevant, injected herself with a substance that created a younger, sexier version of herself (Margaret Qualley).

The Silence of the Lambs (1991) remains the only horror flick to win Best Picture at the Oscars. In addition, it took home top prizes for Anthony Hopkins in Best Actor for playing iconic cannibal Hannibal Lecter, and Jodie Foster in Best Actress as FBI cadet Clarice Starling. The landmark film also won Best Director for Jonathan Demme and Best Adapted Screenplay for Ted Tally, and earned bids in Best Film Editing and Best Sound.

Another spooky movie that found success at the Academy Awards is The Exorcist (1973). Linda Blair was nominated in Best Supporting Actress for playing a girl possessed by the devil. Ellen Burstyn was a Best Actress nominee for playing her petrified mother, and Jason Miller, as a skeptical priest, was up for Best Supporting Actor. The film received 10 total noms, including Best Picture and Best Director for William Friedkin, and won Best Sound and Best Adapted Screenplay for William Peter Blatty.

Other performers to win for frightening roles include Kathy Bates (Misery, 1990) as an obsessed fan, Natalie Portman (Black Swan, 2010) as a traumatic ballerina, and Ruth Gordon (Rosemary’s Baby, 1968) as a satan-worshipping neighbor. But aren't we here to talk about zombies?

To date, the only zombie movies to receive Oscar attention were King of the Zombies (1941) in Best Score, Young Frankenstein (1974) in Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Sound, Frankenstein (1994) in Best Makeup, and Frankenweenie (2012) in Best Animated Feature. There's some debate about whether Emma Stone's character in Poor Things (2023) is actually a zombie, considering she was brought back to life via a brain transplant, but that film received 11 bids and won four: Best Actress, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup and Hairstyling, and Best Production Design.

Speaking of that Best Makeup category, since its creation in 1981, genre films like An American Werewolf in London (1981), The Fly (1986), Beetlejuice (1988), Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992), Pan's Labyrinth (2006), The Wolfman (2010), Poor Things, and The Substance have all taken home trophies. That suggests makeup/hair could be 28 Years Later's strongest shot at claiming Oscar gold next year.

Here is the complete awards history for the 28 Days Later franchise (so far). All are nominations unless designated with winner.

28 Days Later (2003)

Cast: Cillian Murphy, Naomie Harris, Christopher Eccleston, Megan Burns, Brendan Gleeson

Plot: Four weeks after a mysterious, incurable virus spreads throughout the United Kingdom, a handful of survivors try to find sanctuary.

Awards history:

• Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films: Best Horror Film (winner), Best Director, Best Writing
• British Independent Film Awards: Best British Independent Film, Best Director, Best Achievement in Production
• Luxembourg International Film Festival: Best European Fantasy Film
• European Film Awards: Best European Cinematographer (winner), Best European Director
• Fantasporto Awards: Best Director (winner), Best European Fantasy Film (winner), Best Film
• Hugo Awards: Best Dramatic Presentation - Long Form
• International Horror Guild: Best Movie
• Irish Film and Television Awards: Best Actor in a Film for Cillian Murphy
• Motion Picture Sound Editors: Best Sound Editing in Foreign Features
• MTV Movie + TV Awards: Breakthrough Male Performance for Cillian Murphy
• Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival: Best Feature Film (winner)
• Online Film Critics Society Awards: Best Breakthrough Performance for Cillian Murphy, Best Sound
• Taurus World Stunt Awards: Best Fire Stunt
• Empire Awards: Best Newcomer, Best British film (winner)
• Black Reel Awards: Best Breakthrough Performance for Naomie Harris (winner)

28 Weeks Later (2007)

Cast: Robert Carlyle, Rose Byrne, Jeremy Renner, Harold Perrineau, Idris Elba

Plot: Six months after the rage virus was inflicted on the population of Great Britain, the US Army helps to secure a small area of London for the survivors to repopulate and start again. But not everything goes according to plan.

Awards history:

• BET Awards: Best Actor for Idris Elba
• British Independent Film Awards: Most Promising Newcomer for Imogen Poots, Best Technical Achievement
• Evening Standard British Film Awards: Best Technical Achievement
• Málaga Spanish Film Festival: Spanish release of the movie (winner)
• Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival: Best Feature Film
• Empire Awards: Best Horror (winner)
• Golden Trailer Awards: Best Horror TV Spot, Best Horror Poster
• Fright Meter Awards: Best Horror Movie, Best Director
• Scream Awards: The Ultimate Scream, Best Sequel, Best Horror Movie (winner), "Jump-From-Your-Seat" Scene of the Year

28 Years Later (2025)

Cast: Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ralph Fiennes

Plot: A group of survivors of the rage virus lives on a small island. When one of the group leaves the island on a mission into the mainland, he discovers secrets, wonders, and horrors that have mutated not only the infected but other survivors.

Awards history: TBD

There are two other films in the works: 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, due out in 2026, with Nia DaCosta set to direct; and an untitled fifth film, with Boyle back at the helm. Garland is attached to both of these projects as the writer.

SIGN UP for Gold Derby’s free newsletter with latest predictions