The Mummy is one of the more fascinating, and iconic, franchises in cinematic history. The Universal Monsters version of the concept embraced the eerie and unsettling idea of a corpse coming back to life, with a majority of subsequent mummy-inspired movies following a similar suit. In 1999, however, that all changed with the release of Stephen Sommers‘ The Mummy, which blended together action-adventure elements with the idea of reviving the dead.
The movie was a huge hit, resulting in two sequels and multiple Scorpion King spin-offs. Nearly two decades after the last live-action installment in that core Mummy series, we’re finally getting a new installment.
We’re still a ways out from getting our first official looks at Brendan Fraser‘s highly anticipated return to The Mummy franchise, but today brings confirmation from Universal Pictures that the film has secured the title The Mummy: Book of the Dead. Universal also released a new image for the sequel that highlights the new title, which you can see below.
After their success reviving the Scream franchise and their vampire movie Abigail, The Mummy: Book of the Dead is directed by Radio Silence duo Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett. Rachel Weisz, John Hannah, Kevin J. O’Connor, and Oded Fehr are all returning to the franchise alongside Fraser, with the sequel also featuring newcomers Michael Johnston and Numan Acar.
While it’s too early to tell what the actual plot will be, the ominous title, along with the filmmakers’ history of horror, implies that this new chapter will lean more heavily into the darker components of the mythology. Given more recent attempts to bring that mythology to life, having Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett at the helm is promising.
Back in 2017, Universal attempted to revive not only The Mummy, but also its beloved roster of iconic monsters with the Dark Universe franchise. The planned series kicked off with Tom Cruise‘s Mummy, with there also being confirmed casting of Russell Crowe as Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde, Javier Bardem as Frankenstein’s Monster, and Johnny Depp as the Invisible Man. When that debut installment fell short with critics, the entire franchise stagnated before ultimately being scrapped.
Earlier this year, many audiences were confused by Lee Cronin’s The Mummy, which was never meant to be an official revival of the Universal Monster, as proven by the fact that the movie wasn’t made by Universal Pictures. Instead, it was merely a movie’s title and was an entirely new mythology that was inspired by ancient Egypt.
This new title was confirmed one year before the movie’s release date, as The Mummy: Book of the Dead will hit theaters on October 15, 2027.
What do you think of the title? Let us know in the comments below!
