“28 Years Later: The Bone Temple” Fails to Infect the Weekend Box Office

The box office numbers for the 2026 MLK weekend are out, and unfortunately, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple failed to bring people out to theaters.

It’s always disappointing when a movie I like doesn’t materialize successfully at the box office. And yes, I know that there’s a difference between me enjoying a film even though, in a more objective sense, it’s not well-made. However, I think that the situation is different with 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple. Directed by Nia DaCosta, the sequel to the disappointing 28 Years Later (2025) is actually a well-made and well-acted zombie flick.

It currently has a 93% Critic Score and a 89% Audience Score over on Rotten Tomatoes. So, yeah, I’m not the only one who thinks more people should go watch it. Written by Alex Garland, the narrative picks up from where the predecessor concluded, with Spike being rescued by Sir Lord Jimmy Crystal and his gang of Jimmys. Along with following Spike’s journey of trying to fit in with the brutal Jimmys, we also get to see Dr Ian Kelson continuing his mission of memorializing the dead. Things change in a major way when Ian realizes that a cure might be possible for the infected. Of course, Ian and Spike cross paths again due to Lord Jimmy having a particular agenda involving Ian.

28 Years Later: The Bone Temple is leagues better than 28 Years Later. And I know that wasn’t a high bar to clear, but as I have already mentioned, 28 Years Later: TBT is, in and of itself, a well-made zombie flick that features a narrative that dives into themes of religion vs science while bringing up the psychological aspects concerning the infected.

I wouldn’t be surprised if the iconic Ralph Fiennes gets award nominations for his work. The ever-welcome (call me!) Jack O’Connell also delivers a strong performance.

You can watch my quick review below!

Talking about the numbers, 28 Years Later: TBT managed to open in second place with an approximate $13 million, with Avatar 3: Fire and Ash continuing to stay in first place with an estimated $14.5 million. The current domestic opening for 28 Years Later: TBT is lower than the predecessor’s around $30 millon opening.

As of writing this post, the movie has managed to gross a mere $31.2 million worldwide against a reported budget of an approximate $63 million. At this rate, I wouldn’t be surprised if a third movie doesn’t move forward.

Sigh!

I was very excited about a third chapter after that cameo at the end. I have my fingers crossed that the strong word-of-mouth will propel 28 Years Later: TBT to a far wider audience via the home release medium and encourage the studio to greenlight a third installment.

It does look like 28 Years Later not being a good film really soured the audience, essentially deterring them from checking out The Bone Temple.

Ugh!

As for Avatar 3, it currently sits at around $1.3 billion worldwide. Certain analysts feel it will likely end its theatrical run at around $1.6 billion, which will be below the first two movie’s $2 billion each milestone. Even though it’s making a whole lot of money for the studio, context matters for the Avatar franchise. Not reaching the $2 billion mark might be considered “disappointing” by Disney. So, it will be interesting to see if the planned 4th and 5th chapters will be made, or if the main story will be brought to a close with one final movie, until a spiritual sequel or something is released about a decade down the line.

Disney’s animated Zootopia 2 continues making bank. With the current weekend numbers being around $9.2 million, the global gross has surpassed $1.7 billion.

The horror-gore flick Primate fell by 55% from second place last week to 6th place this weekend, with an estimated $5 million. With a reported production budget of around $21 million, it has collected an estimated $24 million globally. I did watch it. And I have to say that I didn’t really care for it. The rabies angle fell apart for me when the infection turned the chimpanzee into a cunning serial killer instead of a rampaging animal. As someone who has worked with rabies in a scientific setting during my academic years, I rolled my eyes at Primate a whole bunch.

The iconic The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring got a re-release, managing to attract $3.4 million across 1,686 theaters and gaining the 7th position. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers brought in $2.4 millon and snagged the 10th spot. Yay to the LotR fans showing up!

January 16, 2026 – January 18, 2026 Weekend Box Office

1. Avatar 3: Fire and Ash – $14.5 million
2. 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple – $13 million
3. Zootopia 2 – $9.2 million
4. The Housemaid – $8.5 million
5. Marty Supreme – $5.4 million
6. Primate – $5 million
7. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring – $3.4 million
8. Greenland 2: Migration – $3.4 million
9. Anaconda – $3.3 million
10. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers – $2.4 million

Did you watch 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple? What did you think of it?

Let us know.

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(via Box Office Mojo)

Author: Farid-ul-Haq

Farid has a Double Masters in Psychology and Biotechnology as well as an M.Phil in Molecular Genetics. He is the author of numerous books including Missing in Somerville, and The Game Master of Somerville. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime/manga, video games, and movies.

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