Tom Cruise Battles Russell Crowe in the Failed Fantasy Reboot Taking Over Prime Video
Universal's 2017 film The Mummy, intended to launch a shared "Dark Universe" of classic movie monsters in the vein of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, has arrived on Prime Video this month, giving audiences a chance to revisit what was widely regarded as a critical and commercial disappointment. The film starred Tom Cruise as soldier of fortune Nick Morton, who battles Sofia Boutella's resurrected Egyptian princess Ahmanet, with Russell Crowe playing an immortal Dr Henry Jekyll heading a secret monster-hunting society meant to seed future spin-offs. Its failure effectively killed Universal's planned franchise, which had lined up stars including Javier Bardem, Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp.
The Mummy followed earlier failed attempts to revive Universal's classic monsters as an interconnected franchise, including 2004's Van Helsing and 2014's Dracula Untold. With the Dark Universe concept now repurposed for Universal's Epic Universe theme park, the studio is instead pursuing a more traditional sequel to the beloved 1999 adventure film The Mummy, bringing back Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz alongside co-stars John Hannah, Kevin J. O'Connor and Oded Fehr. Directed by horror duo Radio Silence, the untitled follow-up is scheduled for release on 15 October 2027.
- 2017's The Mummy, a failed franchise-starter, is now streaming on Prime Video
- It starred Tom Cruise and Russell Crowe, meant to launch Universal's "Dark Universe"
- A new Mummy sequel with Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz is due in 2027
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The Mummy was released in 2017 as Universal's attempt to launch a shared cinematic universe of its classic movie monsters, called the "Dark Universe", following the model Marvel had used successfully for its superhero films. Tom Cruise starred as a soldier of fortune who unleashes a resurrected Egyptian princess, played by Sofia Boutella, while Russell Crowe appeared as an immortal Dr Henry Jekyll, a character intended to link this film to future spin-offs.
The film was poorly received by critics and underperformed financially, and its failure brought an end to Universal's wider Dark Universe plans, which had reportedly involved actors such as Javier Bardem, Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp. It followed other unsuccessful efforts to revive Universal's monster characters as a connected franchise, including Van Helsing in 2004 and Dracula Untold in 2014.
Universal has since moved away from that shared-universe approach, instead developing a direct sequel to the well-liked 1999 adventure film The Mummy, with Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz reprising their roles. That project is due for release in October 2027, giving context to why the 2017 film is once again drawing attention now that it has become available to stream.