AnythingHorror Central

Len Wiseman Set to Direct Universal Reboot of The Mummy

Posted by anythinghorror on September 24, 2012 · 2 Comments 

Len Wiseman

You know Len Wiseman.  He most recently directed the TOTAL RECALL remake, launched the UNDERWORLD franchise, and even gave the DIE HARD franchise a shot in the arm with LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD.  And now, according to deadline.com, Wiseman is wrapping up a deal to reboot Universal’s THE MUMMY franchise.

Universal Pictures is setting Len Wiseman to direct The Mummy, the reboot of a franchise whose most recent incarnation grossed $1.25 billion over three films. Jon Spaihts is writing the script and the studio is eyeing a potential summer 2014 release, so things are moving quickly, with Universal eager to ramp back up one of its most venerable franchises.

The most recent incarnation of THE MUMMY (with Brendan Fraser … you know; the one that grossed $1.25 billion) were fun movies, but they were about as close to a horror film as Sesame Street is a snuff flick!!  But as deadline.com reports:

[Producer Alex] Kurtzman and Wiseman … said the script [Jon] Spaihts is writing puts the gauze-covered villain into a modern-day context … “When I first heard Universal was relaunching this, that is the image that popped into my head, the period tale, the old monster, but when Bob and Alex pitched it, there was a great new take and approach, and a very different mummy as well,” Wiseman told [deadline.com]. “It’s a darker twist on the material, a scarier version.”

Well I like the sound of that!!  THE MUMMY needs to have a darker approach if it’s gonna appeal to the horror community, and it sounds like they realize that:

“We’re reaching into the deep roots of The Mummy, which at its beating heart is a horror movie and then an action movie, and putting it into a context that is real and emotional,” Kurtzman said. “It’s still a four-quadrant film but as a lot of recent movies have proven, audiences are hungry for more than they used to be. You can still have a family movie, an action movie that’s more grounded than these used to be. Without saying too much, we’ve drawn a lot of inspiration from Michael Crichton’s books, and how he ground fantastical tales in modern-day science.”

I know it’s still early, but this one sounds as though it’s on the right track.  Let’s see what happens when the studio gets it’s paws onto it.  I can almost hear it now:  ”It’s good, but I think it needs more action.  Why is The Mummy so dark and scary?”  Time will tell.

What do you think?  Does this franchise need a reboot?

Stay Bloody!!!