Director Nia DaCosta is long overdue for a box office windfall. She has experienced back-to-back box office disappointments after her first studio project, the horror film Candyman, was delayed due to unforeseen global events. DaCosta’s follow-up to Candyman was the mega-budget MCU sequel The Marvels. It emerged as the lowest-grossing installment in the legendary franchise’s history, earning just over $200 million worldwide against a reported budget of more than $250 million. Her latest box office let-down came in the form of 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple. The movie received excellent reviews, and, according to DaCosta, tested through the roof. Its box office performance, she said in a new interview with Empire, came as a shock to everyone involved.
DaCosta broke her silence on the film’s disappointing commercial performance. Released in January this year, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple grossed $58 million worldwide against a reported budget of $63 million. This was significantly short of the $151 million global haul of Danny Boyle‘s 28 Years Later, which debuted earlier in 2025. A third installment, set to be directed by Boyle again, had been announced. But there has been no update about it following the surprising performance of The Bone Temple. “It’s so funny, because literally every barometer we use in the industry to determine whether or not a movie is good, and people like it and want to see it, was through the roof, and yet our box office wasn’t there,” said DaCosta.
Collider Exclusive · Marvel Personality Quiz Which MCU Hero Are You? Spider-Man · Daredevil · Iron Man · Punisher · Thor · Cap
Six heroes. One destiny. Answer 10 questions to discover which Marvel Cinematic Universe hero shares your personality, values, and fighting spirit. Will you swing, fly, or thunder your way to glory?
🕷️Spider-Man
😈Daredevil
🤖Iron Man
💀Punisher
⚡Thor
🛡️Cap
01
What drives you to do what’s right? Choose the answer that feels most like you.
02
It’s 2 AM. Where are you? Your answer says more about you than you’d think.
03
How do you handle a villain who keeps escaping justice? Every hero has a method. What’s yours?
04
How do you feel about keeping a secret identity? The mask — or the lack of one — says everything.
05
You’ve lost someone important because of your heroism. How do you carry that? Every hero pays a price. The question is how they pay it.
06
What’s your role when working with a team? Who you are under pressure is who you actually are.
07
Where do you draw the line between justice and revenge? The answer defines what kind of hero you really are.
08
When you’re not saving the world, what does life look like? The person behind the mask is always the more interesting story.
09
What keeps you up at night? Fear is useful data — if you’re honest about what you’re actually afraid of.
10
The battle is lost. You’re outnumbered, outgunned, and exhausted. What do you do? This is your tiebreaker — choose carefully.
Your Hero Has Been Identified Your MCU Hero Is…
Based on your answers, the Marvel hero who matches your spirit, values, and instincts has been revealed.
Queens, New York
🕷️ Spider-Man
You carry the weight of the world on shoulders that are younger than they should have to be — funny, loyal, and endlessly self-sacrificing.
You do the right thing not because it’s easy, but because no one else will.
You understand that responsibility isn’t a burden you choose — it’s one that finds you.
Whether it’s a neighbourhood mugging or a multiverse crisis, you show up.
Peter Parker’s lesson — that great power demands great responsibility — isn’t a slogan to you. It’s the code you live by, even when it costs you everything.
Hell’s Kitchen, New York
😈 Daredevil
You fight in the shadows between law and chaos, guided by a fierce moral compass that refuses to let the guilty walk free.
You use every tool available — your mind, your body, your faith — to protect those the system overlooks.
You’ve looked into the darkness and chosen not to become it, though the line has never been easy.
Matt Murdock’s duality — champion in the courtroom, devil in the alley — mirrors your own.
Relentless, conflicted, and unwilling to stop. That is exactly you.
Stark Industries, Malibu
🤖 Iron Man
Brilliant, driven, and occasionally insufferable — but always the person who solves the unsolvable problem.
You lead with your mind and back it up with resources, innovation, and a stubbornness that borders on heroic.
You started out looking out for yourself, but somewhere along the way the world became your responsibility.
Tony Stark’s arc — from ego to sacrifice — is your arc too.
You build, you plan, and when the moment comes, you’re willing to give everything. Because in the end, you’re Iron Man.
New York City
💀 The Punisher
You’ve been through fire that would break most people — and it did change you, completely. What’s left is unyielding, relentless, and operating by a code forged in grief.
You don’t ask for forgiveness, and you don’t expect gratitude.
You see a corrupt, broken world and you’ve decided to do something about it, consequences be damned.
Frank Castle’s war is born from love twisted by loss — and so is yours.
Uncompromising and unflinching — the world may not agree with your methods, but your conviction is absolute.
Asgard · Protector of the Nine Realms
⚡ Thor
Powerful, proud, and on a lifelong journey to become worthy of the legend you carry.
You lead with strength but have learned — sometimes painfully — that true greatness comes from humility and growth.
You’re larger than life, yet more vulnerable than you let on.
Thor’s story is one of transformation: from arrogant prince to worthy king, from isolated warrior to beloved protector.
You bring the storm when it’s needed — and the warmth when it matters just as much.
Brooklyn, New York · The Avengers
🛡️ Captain America
You believe in something bigger than yourself — and you fight for it even when the world has moved on and nobody else will.
You don’t bully the small guy, and you never stop when it gets hard.
Steve Rogers didn’t become a hero when he got the serum — he was always one. So were you.
Your strength isn’t in your fists; it’s in your refusal to compromise what’s right, no matter the cost.
In a world full of people taking the easy road, you’re the one who picks up the shield and stands up — every single time.
’28 Years Later: The Bone Temple’ Set Up a Sequel With Cillian Murphy
DaCosta said that she was “disappointed” about the film’s performance in theaters, and remarked that some viewers didn’t realize that it was a sequel to Boyle’s film because they were released so close together. Nonetheless, she said, she remains proud of the work she did — 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple holds a 92% Rotten Tomatoes score. “I made a great film, and I’m really proud of it, and people liked it,” she said, adding, “And so when this came out, and it didn’t do as well in terms of the money it made, I was disappointed. But I also was like, ‘I’m so happy that when people find the film, they’re going to enjoy the film.’ I wish it made more money, but I’m really proud of it.”
Cillian Murphy‘s return to the franchise was teased at the end of the movie, but Sony is yet to make a decision about it. DaCosta addressed the underperformance of The Marvels earlier this year, stating in an interview, “I look back, and everyone tried their best, and everyone was trying to do the right thing, and it is what it is.”
