Danny Boyle backs Jack O’Connell for James Bond, confirms Cillian Murphy’s return in '28 Years Later Part 3'

Washington DC [US], September 30 (ANI): Filmmaker Danny Boyle has confirmed that the third instalment of the ‘28 Years Later’ franchise is in development, revealing that the upcoming film will feature a significant presence of actor Cillian Murphy, Variety reported. 

Speaking at the Zurich Film Festival, where he presented his film ‘Ink’, Boyle said the next chapter in the post-apocalyptic franchise will be made, though the exact timeline remains undecided.

“‘28 Years 3,’ or whatever it ends up being called, will get made because people keep asking about it. Quite when I’m not sure, but there’s a script – a very good script by Alex Garland,” Boyle said.

Talking about Murphy’s involvement, Boyle revealed, “It will have a lot of Cillian Murphy in it. Whether he’ll take his kit off anymore, that I don’t know. He’s got the Oscar now.”

Recalling Murphy’s appearance in the original 2002 film ‘28 Days Later’, Boyle said he was surprised by the actor’s physique.

“He’s gorgeous. When we took his kit off, I couldn’t believe it. He looked like Iggy Pop! Everything was glistening. Oh my God. He’s just one of those people. He doesn’t work out or anything like that: he just looks like that,” he said, according to Variety. 

During the festival, Boyle also shared his thoughts on the search for the next James Bond actor, backing his ‘Ink’ star Jack O’Connell for the iconic role.

“They should cast Jack O’Connell as Bond,” Boyle said.

Boyle had previously exited the James Bond film ‘No Time to Die’ after creative differences over the direction of the project.

“When they asked me to do Bond, we came up with the story [with John Hodge] and they lost confidence in it. It’s a shame, because it could have been really good,” he said, according to Variety. 

However, Boyle expressed confidence in filmmaker Denis Villeneuve, who is set to direct the next Bond film.

“Villeneuve is amazing. Did you see that beginning of ‘Dune: Part Three’, which they showed before ‘The Odyssey’? God, if I was directing ‘The Odyssey’, I would have thought everybody would be disappointed in my film following it. But obviously, Chris Nolan has more confidence than I have,” he said.

Boyle also praised O’Connell’s performance in ‘Ink’, where the actor portrays Larry Lamb in the biographical drama based on James Graham’s stage play about the launch of The Sun newspaper under Rupert Murdoch.

“Have you seen ‘Back to Black’? It’s a wonderful film. He plays the boyfriend and that’s an impossible part. It was an incredible performance,” Boyle said, as per the outlet. 

“I thought he should play Larry Lamb, because he’s weird. Despite the fact that he’s playing a monster, you’re still interested in him. You’re still intrigued by him and he doesn’t repel you,” he added.

Reflecting on the character of Murdoch in ‘Ink’, Boyle said he wanted to present a different perspective rather than rely on existing perceptions.

“People are fascinated by him, and repelled by him, but this comes from a time when he first arrived in the U.K. and was a very different figure. I thought it’s really interesting not to play into the caricature of him, because back at the beginning, he wasn’t like that at all. He’s quite a prudish man, weirdly,” he said.

Boyle also discussed the changing relationship between society and information, saying the film explores how modern conversations around truth and media developed over time.

“We have lost our relationship with the truth, and by that I mean our dependable relationship with the truth,” he said.

“We’ve replaced it with — and the most powerful man in the world is the best example of it — with brazen assertions and loud stories, and completely counter-intuitive declarations,” Boyle added, according to Variety. 

The filmmaker said that while social and political changes can be challenging, he believes progress remains possible.

“You have to look for those sprouts of hope,” Boyle said. (ANI)

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