In case you are unaware, the Brendan Fraser–led “Mummy” franchise was recently revived over at Universal. A sequel is officially happening — Fraser and Rachel Weisz are set to return in their respective roles. If you remember, the franchise abruptly ended after the third film: 2008’s “The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.”
Furthermore, Radio Silence’s Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett will direct from a script by David Coggeshall (“The Family Plan”). Word is that this fourth film will “disregard the events” in “Tomb of the Dragon” — they’re pretending it never existed.
While confirming his return, Fraser is saying that the third film was basically a cash grab, and that this upcoming fourth film was “the one I wanted to make [that] was never made.”
NBC had the rights to broadcast the Olympics that year. So they put two together, and we went to China. Working in Shanghai, an incredible experience. I’m proud of the third one because I think it’s a good standalone movie. We picked up and did what we do with a different crew on deck and gave it our best shot.
So, in a nutshell, the third movie wasn’t made because the creative team necessarily had a story they wanted to tell. It was made because Universal wanted a China-set film released near the Beijing Olympics to ride the marketing wave. Kind of insane if you think about it. That would never happen today.
Fraser continued that the actual “Mummy” he wanted to make at the time is now “forthcoming,” and that he’s “been waiting 20 years for this call.” No further details were given by him, and we’re still not sure when “The Mummy 4” is actually supposed to start production.
The 1999 original was written and directed by Stephen Sommers and was a remake of the 1932 film of the same name. Despite mixed reviews, it was a commercial success and grossed over $416 million worldwide. The film’s success spawned two sequels: 2001’s “The Mummy Returns” and 2008’s “The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor,” both of which grossed $400M+ at the box office.