The “Indiana Jones” franchise is over, adventure/romance movies have fallen out of vogue, so who do we turn to in this hour of need? How about two of the most beloved, childhood-defining heroes of an entire generation? Countless moviegoers of a certain age fell in love with the bumbling duo of Brendan Fraser as criminal/heartthrob adventurer Rick O’Connell and Rachel Weisz as beautiful, dorky Egyptologist/part-time reincarnation of ancient Egyptian royalty Evy Carnahan in both 1999’s “The Mummy” and its 2001 follow-up, “The Mummy Returns.” Both throwback films took direct inspiration from the types of old-school serials and globetrotting epics that Hollywood once made its bread and butter, all while updating the classic Universal monster for a new audience eager for a reinvention. Now, the time has finally come for the two stars to reunite with a fourth film that might as well be catering specifically to the most nostalgic bisexuals among us.
The Hollywood Reporter has the news that Universal Pictures is officially bringing the dormant franchise back from the Egyptian afterlife. Not only will Fraser and Weisz return to reprise their fan-favorite roles from over two decades ago, but they’ll be joined by one of the most exciting director duos around. None other than Radio Silence, the team comprised of Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett (known for both “Ready or Not” and their two “Scream” legacy sequels), will take the directing reins on this with a screenplay written by David Coggeshall (“Orphan: First Kill” and 2024’s Netflix film “The Deliverance”). There’s no word on additional casting or even the basic premise of this next movie, but “The Mummy” is back, and we couldn’t be more thrilled about it.
The Mummy 4 will apparently pretend that Tomb of the Dragon Emperor never happened
Universal has tried to recapture lightning in a bottle and rejuvenate its “The Mummy” property over the years, most notably with that disastrous Tom Cruise film that singlehandedly started and killed the Dark Universe (may it forever rest in peace), but it’s safe to say that nothing has quite compared to the immediate hit that both “The Mummy” and “The Mummy Returns” proved to be in the late ’90s and early aughts. What’s even more noteworthy is that Blumhouse and New Line Cinema are already developing another standalone “The Mummy” film from director Lee Cronin, as previously reported, turning this into an unexpected arm’s race for which iteration of the Universal monster can steal the most headlines.
There’s no word yet on what this sequel will be about or which other cast members could potentially join Fraser and Weisz (fingers crossed for more antics from John Hannah as Evy’s brother Jonathan and Oded Fehr as the handsome and enigmatic Medjai warrior Ardeth Bay, while we’re at it), but we do know one intriguing detail, at the very least. According to the report, a source describes the upcoming project as “not a reboot, but rather a sequel that would disregard the events of the third movie.” For those who may only be learning about the existence of said third film right now (and fairly so, might I add), the rather disappointing threequel “The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor” debuted in 2008 to tepid reviews and a middling response by moviegoers — and, worst of all, featuring Maria Bello as a recast Evy. Needless to say, ignoring that entirely is probably the right call.
No release date has yet been announced.
