Danny Boyle has revealed how the Sycamore Gap tree features in 28 Years Later, despite the movie filming over a year after it was controversially cut down.
The legacy sequel to 28 Days and 28 Weeks Later releases today in cinemas in the UK.
Starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Jodie Comer, Ralph Fiennes, Jack O’Connell, and Alfie Williams, the film picks up 28 years on from the outbreak featured in the previous films, focusing on a father-son duo played by Taylor-Johnson and Williams.
Fans going to see the film today however may be surprised to see a scene featuring the Sycamore Gap tree.
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The tree, which was located next to Hadrian’s Wall in Northumberland, stood for over 150 years and was popularised in the public psyche by a famous scene in the 1991 Robin Hood: Prince in Thieves.
In 2023, two men felled the tree in an act of vandalism that later saw both arrested and charged with criminal damage, having been found guilty in a subsequent trial earlier this year.
The stump still remains, but may take another 150 years to grow to the point it was.
Whilst the sight of the iconic tree is welcome imagery in the new film, it will be confusing to those aware of the movie’s timeline.
28 Years Later was announced in January 2024, with filming taking place in May of 2024. This was almost a year after it was felled in September of 2023.
Though many may wonder if it was archival footage or if they misled the public about when they shot it, director Danny Boyle revealed that neither of these are the case.
Speaking to Sky News ahead of the film’s release, he revealed it was digitally recreated as a ‘tribute’, but does play a wider role in the film’s themes.
He said: “It had already been destroyed by the time we came to film, so we recreated it for the same reasons that you see the Queen in this… all the things that have happened to us in the last 28 years have not happened.”
They shot extensively in Northumbria, leading Boyle to feel he ‘couldn’t ignore’ paying tribute to the tree.
He said: “So we've recreated it deliberately to say that it was still growing… which is a wonderful tribute.”
The film has been met with near overwhelming praise, debuting to a score of 92% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Roger Ebert’s Robert Daniels gave the film 3.5 out of 4 stars, saying: “A deeply earnest film, a picture whose sincerity is initially off putting until it’s endearing.”
28 Years Later is available to watch now in cinemas.
Topics: 28 Years Later, Film, Sycamore Gap tree, TV and Film
Michael Slavin