28 Years Later: The Bone Temple is an incredible accomplishment of a film, proving to be one of the great second-act installments of a trilogy in recent years. The film has earned immense amounts of critical praise, and given director Nia DaCosta a well-earned victory lap in the press relating to the film.
DaCosta has been one of the most promising young directors in Hollywood over the past several years, making everything from stellar character-based dramas (Little Woods) to dread-soaked horror legacy sequels (Candyman) and beyond. However, the film that she’s probably most associated with by the general public is the 2023 Marvel Cinematic Universe film, The Marvels.
That film was an infamous flop, one that netted largely positive reviews but failed to recoup its budget at the box office. In just the past few months though, DaCosta has more than recovered her reputation with not one but two stellar films: 2025’s Hedda and 2026’s 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple. All of this to say, DaCosta knows first-hand how difficult it is to go through the fires of vehement online discourse and come out the other side while remaining true to yourself and your artistic intent. That’s why it’s no real surprise to hear that DaCosta revealed that she is a huge fan of Rian Johnson’s Star Wars: The Last Jedi.
In an interview with internet personality and influencer Straw Hat Goofy, when The Last Jedi is brought up in relation to post-WWII rebuilding and the ways in which that had an influence on the world of the 28 Years Later trilogy, DaCosta says, “Let me tell you something about that movie. It’s amazing. We all just need to relax, we need to take a breath. Because that movie is great.”
Having made Candyman, The Marvels, and now 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, DaCosta is clearly no stranger to making audacious sequels that strive to push the characters out of their comfort zones and force them to confront new challenges. Furthermore, given the online discourse that The Marvels got wrapped up in, she’s also no stranger to the ways in which such myopic discussions can serve to obfuscate the waters when it comes to a film’s actual reception.
It’s also worth noting the similarities between Star Wars: The Last Jedi and 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple. Each of them is the second installment in a sequel trilogy that picks up mere moments after the conclusion of the previous film, brings in a new director, and takes a decidedly more esoteric and existential approach to the material.
DaCosta is far from alone in her opinion that The Last Jedi is actually a great film, as actor Josh O’Connor recently voiced like-minded praise for Johnson’s film, calling it "so beautiful" and saying that he "wept" at the final shot of the film.