Summary

• Rachel Weisz's absence from The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor was a surprise, as her role as Evie launched her career. Different stories have circulated about the recasting, including a suggestion that Weisz didn't want to play a character with an adult son.
• Maria Bello replaced Weisz as Evie in The Mummy 3, but faced challenges because fans were attached to Weisz's portrayal. Bello did a good job, but Weisz's absence was felt.
• A fourth Mummy movie is still possible, especially with Brendan Fraser's resurgence in popularity. Fans are hoping for Rachel Weisz to return as Evie, as there is potential for a fresh look at the characters later in life.

Actress Rachel Weisz didn't return to play Evie, adventurer Rick O'Connell's equally capable wife, in 2008’s The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, leaving fans to wonder why there was no Rachel Weisz Mummy 3 appearance. That absence came as a big surprise at the time, as playing Evie in The Mummy and The Mummy Returns is what launched Weisz's career into the Hollywood A-list. She's since gone on to win an Oscar, a Golden Globe, and a BAFTA for her work and become one of the most recognizable actresses around.

It's not that Rachel Weisz had become averse to starring in popcorn blockbusters: her career since leaving The Mummy has seen a healthy mix of mainstream projects and prestige dramas. In 2021, Weisz even joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe in Black Widow as Melina Vostakoff. Over the years, different stories have circulated about the Rachel Weisz Mummy 3 recast and the part of Evie was ultimately taken over by Maria Bello.

What The Mummy 3 Director Said About The Recast

One explanation (via Digital Spy) for Rachel Weisz's The Mummy 3 exit was given by the sequel's director, Rob Cohen. It wasn't very flattering, as Cohen suggested Weisz balked at the idea of playing a character with an adult son, as Evie and Rick's son in the Mummy franchise was being aged up for the film. However, there have been several conflicting reports about this, including from Rachel Weisz herself.

Evie and Rick O'Connell's son, Alex, was also recast. In The Mummy Returns, Alex is a precocious eight-year-old in 1933, but The Mummy 3 jumps forward in time thirteen years to 1946 in The Mummy timeline, making Alex twenty-one years old. Freddie Boath played Alex in The Mummy Returns, but with there being only a seven-year gap in reality between the movies, he was too young to return. Alex was therefore recast, with the role going to Australian actor Luke Ford.

However, it's not been confirmed that disputes around this were responsible for Evie also being recast. It was also reported at the time (via Cinema Blend) that the reason for Weisz's departure from The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor was due to problems with the script. Apparently, Weisz felt it did a disservice to the Evie character, making her not want to return to the role. Universal denied these reports at the time, and Weisz chose neither to confirm nor deny the claims.

What Rachel Weisz Said About Not Returning For The Mummy 3

A representative of Rachel Weisz told Digital Spy that she stepped away from The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor as she had a newborn son and didn’t want to be away from him for an extended period to shoot the next movie in The Mummy franchise. However, she starred in two other films around the same time, which casts doubt on that theory. While it sometimes gets overlooked in hindsight, Weisz herself offered a more mundane explanation than any of the above reasons for her lack of participation in The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.

The U.K.-based ES Magazine interviewed her in the Nov. 16 issue back in 2008. In it, Weisz said that she had never even read the script and that the scheduling of its production was what put her off the project. Shooting the movie would've entailed spending five months in China and required her to immediately begin filming right after production wrapped on director Rian Johnson’s The Brothers Bloom. Of all the possible explanations for her not to return, scheduling conflicts would seem to be the most likely.

Watch The Mummy 3 on Apple TV

Was Maria Bello Good As Evie In The Mummy 3?

Rachel Weisz's The Mummy 3 absence was sorely felt — but what about the actress who took her place? Maria Bello played Evie in The Mummy 3, and the actor had a decent film career before The Mummy 3, appearing in two or three movies per year. Outside of The Mummy franchise, Bello is best known for playing Lil Lovell in Coyote Ugly. She was also in the movie adaptation of A History of Violence, and Thank You For Smoking.

Sadly for Bello, the role of Evie was something of a spiked chalice, as Weisz did such a good job putting her own stamp on the role. Maria Bello probably would've been better received as Evie if she had played the part first. Bello did a fine job portraying the titular character and a talented actress in her own right, and she was just as good as Rachel Weisz in The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. However, unfortunately, people had grown so attached to Weisz as the character from the first two installments, overshadowing Bello's performance.

Will Rachel Weisz Return In The Mummy 4?

If Rachel Weisz didn’t return for The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor due to concerns over its quality, they proved prophetic, as the film received scathing reviews upon release. While the criticism was divided equally onto all aspects of the film, a lot was targeted on the recasting of Evie, and fans lamented Weisz’s absence. While Maria Bello is an accomplished actress, the relationship and chemistry with lead star Brendan Fraser in this movie is a shadow of what Weisz brought to the role. According to Box Office Mojo, it was also the lowest-grossing movie in the trilogy (but still managed $400 million worldwide).

Universal Studios was considering continuing the franchise with The Mummy 4. Tentatively titled The Mummy: Rise of the Aztec, the movie would have seen The O’Connell family travel to South America to battle Antonio Banderas’s villain. Luke Ford stated back in 2008 (via Bloody Disgusting) that he was signed on for three Mummy movies, potentially being groomed to become the new lead of the series to replace Fraser.

Maria Bello was also contracted to return as Evie, meaning Rachel Weisz would not have returned for The Mummy 4 regardless. Universal ultimately decided to cancel development on The Mummy 4 and reboot the series in an attempt at a shared monster universe. Tom Cruise’s The Mummy was supposed to kick off the Dark Universe. However, when it bombed in the summer of 2017, the franchise once again stalled.

Why Now Is The Perfect Time For A Rachel Weisz The Mummy Return

The Mummy 4 can still happen, especially given that Brendan Fraser is enjoying something of a career renaissance. The actor starred in the cherished HBO series Doom Patrol, won an Academy Award for his role in The Whale, and had a major role in Martin Scorsese's Killers of the Flower Moon. Additionally, Weisz congratulated Fraser on his Oscar win, so their friendship is clearly still there, and it's likely that their chemistry could be reignited onscreen instantly.

There hasn't been any official word on the fourquel happening, but there's lots of buzz surrounding it following Fraser's newfound popularity, and Weisz's Mummy 4 return makes perfect sense. Despite suffering numerous injuries shooting the Mummy movies, Brendan Fraser has confirmed he’d happily return as Rick O’Connell (via Gizmodo). When interviewed in 2023, Fraser said on the subject

"I’m not opposed to it. I don’t know an actor who doesn’t want a job... I don’t think I’ve been this famous and unsalaried at the same time in my professional life, so sign me up.”

Rachel Weisz hasn't given any comment, but it's been over 15 years since the release of 2008's Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. Were she willing to return for a fourth movie, the timing couldn't be better. Additionally, due to so much time passing outside the story itself, there's plenty of scope for a fresh look at Rick and Evie O'Connell later in life. Having Brendan Fraser's Rick and Rachel Weisz's Evie a decade older and navigating the world in the immediate aftermath of WW2 would make for interesting storytelling — but it would only be possible if Rachel Weisz would return as Evie.

What Rachel Weisz Has Done Since The Mummy Movies

Rachel Weisz's The Mummy recasting didn't go down well with people who watched the third movie, but her reasoning behind not returning was sound. If she were to do The Mummy 3, she would've had to spend five months filming in China, and she had recently wrapped up making The Brothers Bloom, a dramedy starring Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo. Prior to working on The Brothers Bloom, she starred in the Ryan Reynolds-led romcom Definitely, Maybe, as Summer Hartley. This would mean she already wrapped up two movies in 2008 prior to The Mummy 3, so she was rightfully exhausted.

After her career took off, Rachel Weisz starred in Peter Jackson's The Lovely Bones, a twisting tale about a young girl who is kidnapped and murdered by their neighbor. She then went on to appear as Hester Collyer in The Deep Blue Sea and Dr. Marta Shearing in The Bourne Legacy. Weisz also starred in the 2015 drama/sci-fi film The Lobster alongside Colin Farrell. Most recently, she played the character Melina in Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow.

The Rachel Weisz The Mummy recast has sparked an online petition for the actress to return to The Mummy 4. People across the internet are demanding a legacy sequel for the franchise and that the original crew return for one final ride. As of now, there are a little over 6,500 signatures on the petition (via Change.org), showing that the failed Tom Cruise reboot wasn't enough to completely tank the franchise. One last The Mummy movie would be welcomed with open arms by those with fond memories of the original – as long as Rachel Weisz and the original cast were to return.

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  The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor

  Summary:

  In the Far East, Alex O'Connell, the son of famed mummy fighters Rick and Evie O'Connell, unearths the mummy of the first Emperor of Qin - a shape-shifting entity cursed by a witch centuries ago.

  Release Date:

  2008-08-01

  Budget:

  $145 million

  Cast:

  Brendan Fraser, John Hannah, Jet Li, Michelle Yeoh, Maria Bello

  Director:

  Rob Cohen

  Genres:

  Thriller, Fantasy, Action, Adventure, Horror

  Rating:

  PG-13

  Runtime:

  112 minutes

  Writers:

  Alfred Gough, Miles Millar

  Studio(s):

  Universal Pictures

  Distributor(s):

  Universal Pictures

  prequel(s):

  The Mummy, The Mummy Returns

  Franchise(s):

  The Mummy