Jim (28 Days Later)

Jim (born James) is a fictional character in the 28 Days Later film series created by Alex Garland and portrayed by Irish actor Cillian Murphy. Jim serves as the main protagonist of the original film in 2002.^[1] Jim is a bicycle courier who awakens from a coma after twenty-eight days because of traffic accident, later finding out that the hospital is deserted, and gets chased by infected people with the so-called 'Rage virus' inside a church.^[2]

Jim
28 Days Later character
Cillian Murphy as Jim in 28 Days Later
First appearance	28 Days Later (2002)
Last appearance	28 Years Later: The Bone Temple (2026)
Created by	Alex Garland
Portrayed by	Cillian Murphy
Status	Alive[a]
In-universe information
Alias	Jimmy James[b]
Gender	Male
Occupation	Bicycle courier
Significant other	Selena (girlfriend)

Character biography

Background

Jim, named James, was born in Great Britain, later becoming a bicycle courier. After a freak incident, Jim awakens at St Thomas' Hospital, London, inside a coma, in which he has been in for twenty-eight days.^[3]

28 Days Later

Further information: 28 Days Later

In 28 Days Later, Jim awakens at St Thomas' Hospital, London, inside a coma he's been in for twenty-eight days after a traffic accident. He discovers that the hospital is deserted and walks out, roaming the streets of London where its polluted, empty, and eerie. He walks into a church, where a group of infected people chase after Jim, but he is rescued by Selena and Mark, two survivors who take him as a refugee, walking him inside a streetside shop. During another twenty-eight days, Mark gets killed by being bitten by an infected human,^[4][5] with Jim and Selena finding Hannah at an abandoned mansion. After twenty-eight days, Jim, Selena, and Hannah discover that they are the only survivors that endured the apocalyptic outbreak in England.^[6][2]

28 Years Later: The Bone Temple

Further information: 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple

Cillian Murphy is supposedly returning as Jim, with his status unclear, playing in a scene of the upcoming film 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, releasing in January 2026.^[7] Jim is supposed to be returning in a bigger role of the upcoming untitled fifth installment.^[8][1]

Reception

Many critics noted how Cillian Murphy's performance as Jim launched his career and established him as a versatile actor. ComingSoon reviewed Murphy a "superb find" and highlighted his performance as a "man torn apart by the new world". Variety ranked his role as one of his best performances, noting that Jim acts as the perfect audience surrogate. Murphy's shocked but level-headed demeanor invites the audience to experience the collapsed world through his eyes. Critics specifically lauded his character's journey from a bewildered bicycle courier to a fierce and resourceful survivor, and how Murphy conveyed this progression with raw emotion.^{[9] [10][11]}

Notes

1. In the film's DVD alternative release, endings show that Jim had been killed after arranging his euthanasia, getting infected, or by fatal injuries.
2. Jim's full first name is James, but is mostly referred to as Jim.