Why Jimmy in 28 Years Later sequel has exactly seven 'fingers' in his cult
28 Years Later: The Bone Temple heavily features a disturbing satanic cult centred around ‘Sir Jimmy Crystal’, a Jimmy Savile-like leader.
Claiming to hear the voice of his ‘father’ Satan in his head Jimmy, played by Jack O’Connell, leads his Savile-inspired cult, of which there are seven members, which he calls 'fingers'. The film follows Alfie Williams as Spike, who becomes the latest follower, or 'finger', in ‘The Jimmys’.
In the very first scene of the film, Spike is made to fight another Jimmy to the death, killing him and therefore taking his place in the cult. Later, he is also forced to watch as they skin people alive.
While the gang itself is pretty horrifying, particularly with the various references to Savile, the reason that there are exactly seven ‘fingers’ in the cult at all times is surprisingly heartwarming.
Why are there only seven fingers in the Jimmys?
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In 28 Years Later, the film opens on a young boy on the day the outbreak happens, with him and his siblings being sat down to watch Teletubbies. On a rewatch, it becomes even more obvious that this was a young Sir Jimmy Crystal, but one fan noticed a specific detail about the scene. Taking to X, they pointed out that it would make more sense if there were five fingers, but made a clever realisation as to why there was seven.
They said: “The Fingers are called The Fingers but have more than five members but cannot have more than seven, this is because Jimmy is (I assume subconsciously) replacing the same amount of sisters he lost.”
The heartbreaking realisation totally reframes the Jimmys – though it doesn't really excuse the whole skinning people business.
The explanation shores up a minor plot hole in The Bone Temple
Sir Jimmy Crystal was thought by many after the first film to be the child shown surviving the outbreak, however this is confirmed in a conversation between him and Kelson in the sequel discussing the church Jimmy grew up next to.
The explanation though that his seven fingers are a reference to the sisters he loses in 28 Years Later is a useful one because otherwise it is a slightly odd plot hole.
Jimmy is a Satanist who literally believes that ‘St Nick’ is speaking to him via voices in his head.
Most of the Jimmys have upside down crosses carved into their foreheads in honour of this and go as far as to skin people alive in honour of Satan.
It is slightly odd then that they have seven members of the cult considering this is such an important number within Christianity.
Between the Sabbath falling on the 7th day, leading to the number becoming a repeated theme throughout the bible.
Topics: 28 Years Later, Jimmy Savile, Film, Horror, TV and Film
Michael Slavin