For years, Universal Pictures has been attempting to craft their own version of a shared movie universe, centered around the pantheon of monsters they famously brought to life in the Golden Age of Hollywood. Dracula Untold was supposed to kick things off, but its weak critical/commercial performance led to those plans being abandoned. Now, with Tom Cruise starring, The Mummy seeks to not only reboot the popular adventure franchise, but finally give Universal the monster-themed universe they've been dreaming of for years.
The new movie will not only introduce Cruise's character as a lead for future films, but Russell Crowe's Dr. Jekyll. To further promote this new take on The Mummy, Universal have been pushing out fresh promotional material for the film ahead of its release later this year. We got a new poster yesterday and a second trailer arrives on Sunday. We even got a description of the trailer that was shown yesterday at CinemaCon, which is likely to be similar if not identical to the one we'll see this weekend.
As is increasingly the way of Hollywood blockbusters, we now have a teaser for the new Mummy trailer, courtesy of Universal Pictures. Like the previously-released footage, it features the creepy new Mummy, a very flummoxed looking Cruise, and plenty of chaos. Rather than a period piece like the Mummy films past, this present day-set movie features all of the destruction and action that audiences have come to expect from modern tentpole films.
Like many Tom Cruise movies, the new film will also feature one big action set-piece designed to be plastered across the marketing. This go around, it's a zero-G airplane stunt. And as is the case in his other films, Cruise did the stunt himself. That's especially impressive, considering that the scene required a grueling 64 takes to get it right. Hopefully, that level of detail and dedication will translate to a unique action movie.
Cruise has a strong record at the box office, so it's likely the numbers he pulls in for the Mission: Impossible franchise will translate over to fantasy/action films. That said, the film could receive backlash for being a monster movie that lacks any real horror trappings. There's no guarantee that's the case, but from what we've seen of The Mummy so far, it appears to be an action movie above all else. With the release of the trailer this Sunday, we should have a better grasp on the tone and plot of The Mummy, so stay tuned.
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Source: Universal Pictures
