The trailer looks good but I'm not convinced about the casting of Tom Cruise. He looks OK in the role and still seems to be considered a box office draw, but if they're planning a shared universe then they're considering something that should be ongoing for at least 10 years (Marvel are now at 9 years with plans announced for at least another 2 years). Tom's 55 now and obviously extremely fit, but will he still be up to the demands of filming a fairly action heavy series at 65?
Ahhh Doc..... now I gotta go and admit that I loved DU and everything about it. I think it got hammered because it wasn't what people were expecting (God forbid we do anything "new & unusual"). I liked that it presented him as a man trying to protect his country and family because in reality, he is revered there for that very thing. His was the only country the Ottoman Turks never really got a foothold in. At least, not for very long. Were all of his actions as noble as the movie made them look? Of course not. But that's the way Hollywood works. I thought Luke Evans was bloody brilliant in No One Lives and believe he deserved Drac. and did a fabulous job with the role. It worked better for me than Van Helsing did although I appreciated that one too. I also loved the 87th remake of The Mummy with Brendan Fraser & Rachel Weisz... and yeah, the sequel worked for me on that one as well. I just pretend that the third one never got made and refuse to acknowledge it's existence!
I'd like to believe that this is going to work for them because I've seen a number of successful "reboots" over the last several years so I know it can be done. I'm just not entirely convinced that Universal really understands how to do it well. So, with some apprehension and resistance, I'm going to go ahead and hope for the best anyway. Unfortunately, I do not worship at the alter of TC as, for me, his movies have always been: "TC gets a law degree", TC drives a race car", "TC is a fabulous and magical spy", "TC learns to kick alien ass from a girl tougher than he is"... Oh, also "TC is the last guy on Earth... but not really". However, some of the clips from The Mummy have intrigued me enough to set that aside and go see it anyway. I can always talk trash about him later!
Damn! And there's that "bad girl" thing all over again! I have got to learn how to get some control over my mouth/keyboard.
Universal kicks off its classic movie monsters initiative this summer with its upcoming reboot of “The Mummy” starring Tom Cruise. Several other films are in the works as well and producer Chris Morgan, who is shepherding the whole enterprise along with ‘Mummy’ helmer Alex Kurtzman, tells CinemaBlend that they’re still trying to figure out which of the monsters will come next:
“Beyond [The Mummy], we’re just developing… we’re kind of locking in on all of the scripts. Right now, it’s Bride of Frankenstein and Creature from the Black Lagoon and the Invisible Man, Van Helsing and The Wolfman. Those things kind of go a pace, and Universal will… we’re in talks to kind of figure out what the next film to come out will be.”
Russell Crowe plays Dr. Henry Jekyll in the series, in this incarnation he’s part of a clandestine organisation known as Prodigium which basically serves in the same capacity as MONARCH in the Godzilla/Kong cinematic universe or SHIELD in the Marvel cinematic universe.
Morgan has worked on the scripts for the last six “Fast and Furious” films, so have there been any discussions about him writing one of these movies?
“No, no. I’m just kind of, right now, we are producing and overseeing — Alex Kurtzman and I, our company has kind of joined together to oversee all of these films. So we’re really just working with the writers, breaking the stories, [figuring out] ‘What is that first story that we’re going to tell about the Wolfman?’
It’s kind of critical to step in with the right foot, and to give people enough of an homage to the original, to make them complicated and dark characters, but to also kind of address our sentiments and a modern context, and let people feel like they’re seeing something fresh. So it’s kind of the joy of being able to talk monsters all day.”
Universal Pictures has premiered a new behind-the-scenes featurette for Alex Kurtzman’s “The Mummy” reboot – one that offers a first look at Russell Crowe as Dr. Henry Jekyll transforming into Mr. Hyde.
The featurette also teases a vampire skull, laying the ground for what Universal intends to be a cinematic universe involving their classic monsters.
Safely entombed in a crypt deep beneath the unforgiving desert, an ancient queen (Sofia Boutella) whose destiny was unjustly taken from her, is awakened in our current day, bringing with her malevolence grown over millennia and terrors that defy human comprehension.
From the sweeping sands of the Middle East through hidden labyrinths under modern-day London, The Mummy brings a surprising intensity and balance of wonder and thrills in an imaginative new take that ushers in a new world of gods and monsters.
Annabelle Wallis, Jake Johnson, Courtney B. Vance and Russell Crowe co-star in the film which opens June 9th.
Just found this about the thinking behind these films.....
The plan is for a new monster movie to come out every year. The first of these, based on the character of the Mummy, will begin shooting in early 2016, with other pictures centered on Dracula, Van Helsing, Bride of Frankenstein and the Wolfman following in short order. To prepare, Kurtzman and Morgan obsessively watched Universal monster films made with the likes of Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi, and to broaden the sense of genre, augmented that with a diet of Hammer Horror pictures and other creepy works.
“We’re creating a mythology, so we’re looking at this canon and thinking, ‘What are the rules?’ ” Kurtzman says. “What can we break and what are the ones that are untouchable?”
Storyboard artists and designers are creating the look and feel of the various productions, and each of the 10 writers working on the project has been assigned a monster to oversee.
“The idea is that we have a deep bench of brains to consult with about how their monster fits into our world as we go forward,” Kurtzman explains.
To head its team, Universal brass has found two self-confessed horror geeks who credit pictures like “Dracula” and “Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein” with inspiring their love of film.
“I was raised on monster movies,” Morgan says. “I used to make my own fake puke, so I wouldn’t have to go to school and could stay home and watch things like ‘Cat People’ on TV. I can still tell you what I used — orange juice, Saltines, Pepsi and milk.”
Both men think that after more than a decade of seeing Captain America, Batman and other heroes routinely save civilization, moviegoers are ready for a change of pace.
“Heroes tend to be perfect, but most people in an audience aren’t ever going to know what it’s like to be the smartest, strongest or fastest person alive,” Morgan says. “But there’s a darkness inside everybody. And everyone wants to be able to turn a curse into empowerment. The monsters have been in the shadows, and now it’s time to bring them out into the light.”
Early tracking figures indicate Universal Pictures’ “The Mummy” reboot is headed towards a projected $40 million-plus opening weekend in North America.
That’s a quite modest start for the Tom Cruise-led tentpole, though the film is expected to fare much better in overseas markets. The figure is also before the short-term marketing push for the film which will likely boost that estimate.
Before marketing, the new “The Mummy” reportedly came in at $125 million. Returns should be swift as the film is opening day and date in almost every major global market including China.
Russell Crowe, Sofia Boutella, Courtney B. Vance, Annabelle Wallis and Jake Johnson also star in the Alex Kurtzman film which opens June 9th.
Universal Pictures has released the first five clips from “The Mummy,”
the Tom Cruise-led action-adventure feature also starring Annabelle Wallis, Jake Johnson, Courtney B. Vance and Russell Crowe. This first of a planned cinematic universe of classic monsters opens on June 9th.
Thought safely entombed in a crypt deep beneath the unforgiving desert, an ancient queen (Sofia Boutella) whose destiny was unjustly taken from her, is awakened in our current day, bringing with her malevolence grown over millennia and terrors that defy human comprehension.
