The second trailer for The Mummy just dropped and it actually looks kind of good…
The first addition to Universal’s rebooted Monster Universe, The Mummy adheres to the usual premise of an ancient evil being awakened and wreaking havoc in the world. At this point, it’s difficult to distinguish it from other supernatural films in a similar vein. However, the plot is mostly still under wraps except for what little information has been revealed in the previous teasers. Although, from what has been shown so far, it looks like Universal is trying to create an authentically frightening world surrounded by myths and legends, which is super exciting. The film stars: Tom Cruise (Nick Morton), Annabelle Wallis (Jenny Halsey), Sofia Boutella (Ahmanet) and Russell Crowe (Dr. Henry Jekyll).
The trailer begins with Cruise’s character, Nick, running and gunning from an unknown enemy before he is almost swallowed by the ground revealing a mysterious tomb. Nick and his crew excavate the tomb and find a mysterious sarcophagus which they try to haul out of the country on a cargo plane to London. However the plane experiences some supernatural malfunctions causing it to crash with Cruise as the only survivor (after he is mysteriously resurrected). The following sequences depict some gratuitous violence and some cool mummy action all to the riff of the Rolling Stone’s ‘Paint It Black’.
Universal’s Monster Universe is still in it’s infancy but if the upcoming titles are any indication, it looks promising. Universal has taken a page out of Marvel’s book and will feature a number of characters in solo films before interacting with each other in a sort of twisted Avengers crossover movie. The characters announced so far are: The Invisible Man (with Johnny Depp attached to star), The Wolfman, Frankenstein and a Van Helsing reboot. Universal has stated that they are aiming for a grounded take on the source material by creating a terrifying array of characters.
Are Universal taking a big risk with their Monster Universe plan? All eyes will be on how The Mummy will be received both critically and commercially as other studios have attempted to replicate Marvel’s Avengers universe with varying degrees of success. After all, the DC superhero universe has made bank at the box office but has been pretty universally panned by critics and the prestige factor of these films matter for studios. If The Mummy bombs, it could throw the whole blueprint into question. If The Mummy is a success though, we could be looking at a new monster film every year for the next decade. Either way, there is a lot riding on this film and pressure it on to deliver.
Tom Cruise along with co-stars Russell Crowe, Sofia Boutella and Annabelle Wallis will be coming to Australia to promote the movie at the Sydney State Theatre on May 22nd.
Check out the trailer below and look out for The Mummy in theatres June 8th.