As if the marketing for 28 Years Later couldn’t get any better, clever fans have found a message hidden on singular frames of the new trailer – and realised it actually is the password for a secret website.
The upcoming horror sequel starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ralph Fiennes, Jodie Comer, Jack O’Connell, and Erin Kellyman is coming out in a couple months and while most fans watching the new trailer were trying to figure out if Cillian Murphy was in it, some eagle-eyed fans were doing detective work.
Fans online spotted that there were symbols hidden in the corner of several frames, flashing so quickly you’d easily miss them.
What is the hidden message?
The frames show symbols such as the below, white and looking as if someone has handwritten a code on the trailer’s film reels.
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In an official discussion of the trailer on the subreddit r/28YearsLater, fans noticed this and realised they may be a secret message to it.
One fan ended up putting the symbols through a rosicrucian cipher, a simple encryption which Sony had released earlier this year as marketing for the film to translate the symbols into letters.
When putting the symbols through that cipher it comes out with a single word – mementomori.
This latin phrase, ‘remember that you have to die’, symbolises the inevitability of death, and beyond its importance at hinting at the plot, actually unlocks a secret website.
What is the secret 28 Years Later website?
A website called RageLeaks.net was found by fans and it requires a password to enter.
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Following the trailer it was discovered that mementomori was actually the password, giving access to a retro site featuring a message, a set of images, and a 28 year countdown.
The TXT file on the site bears an ominous message reading: “The virus brought us more than the rage. The sorrow, for our lost home. The guilt, for the ones we left behind. The righteous indignation for the secrets being kept from us.
“It's been almost 28 years since the outbreak. And still, not a single shred of truth about what's really going on. They say it's to protect us. It's for our own good. After all this time, what are they still hiding?
“They classify satellite images. They forbid any communication with survivor communities. They suppress rumors and discredit reports that somehow, the infected have adapted.
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“They don't want us to see. But we must bear witness. All of us.”
There is also a second document on a 'Lindisfarne commune', which is a real life island in Northumberland only accessible at certain times of day due to the tides.
The message reads: "Tidal island provides increased security and long rang view of threats.
"Stable social order keep community secure. Zero attempts at breaking quarantine."
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The creepy message is the latest in the much praised marketing campaign for 28 Years Later.
Comments on the latest trailer on YouTube noted how the trailer gives very little away about the plot whilst building excitement, with one saying: “Finally after some years, someone understood that trailers have its own art, you hire artist to make your trailer.
"THIS IS HOW YOU MAKE A PROPER TRAILER, gives you the feeling of the movie without spoiling it and making you intrigued to what's it about.”
28 Years Later releases June 20, 2025.
Topics: 28 Years Later, Film, TV and Film
Michael Slavin