“A poor man’s bullet time,” 28 years later, used iPhones to play The Matrix

In the early 2000s, Danny Boyle chose to rely on digital camcorders to immortalize his zombie invasion. The idea behind this choice was obviously to accentuate realism, to tell the story of the fall of the contemporary world as if it had been filmed by the protagonists with tools accessible to all. In a few weeks, a sequel will be released under the aegis of Danny Boyle and with Alex Garland writing the screenplay. 23 years have passed since the first installment.

The saga is therefore entering a new era, already in terms of themes and challenges, but also and above all technically. Gone are the tiny digital formats and hello to high definition and professional equipment. Boyle is banking on a particularly wide format close to that of 70mm. However, he's not going to completely deny his origins by bringing in new consumer devices.

"A poor man's bullet time"

Indeed, the director admits to having used iPhones for a sequence inspired by a monument of popular culture. Now that our phones have become the most used tools for filming everyday life, the director's choice is not the most surprising. Last year, it was revealed that an iPhone 15 Pro Max had been used, without further details being shared. We now know what it's all about. He explains to IGN:

Imagine the "bullet time" scene from The Matrix but transposed to the zombie universe. He explains that this allows him to have access to a significant number of points of view for his action scenes. A 180 degrees that allows him to move and change perspective in the editing process. Other scenes were filmed using iPhones, with configurations of 8 or 10 smartphones.

A sequel that calls for others

Danny Boyle will have the opportunity to experiment with this genre after 28 Years Later. Indeed, under the aegis of Sony, the saga is already offering a new chapter. It will be directed by Nia DaCosta, The Bone Temple is due for release in January 2026 in theaters. While the story remains a mystery, we already know that it will explore the elements introduced by 28 Years Later in greater depth. As a reminder, the latter features Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Jodie Cormer. They play survivors of the apocalypse, secluded on an island. Sent to the mainland, they discover that the infected have mutated and survival has become even more complicated. 28 Years Later is released in theaters on June 18.