A new behind the scenes video for The Mummy teases the five stages of transformation Princess Ahmanet goes through in the upcoming horror thriller. The Mummy, of course, signals a rebirth of Universal Pictures monster movie franchise, which first introduced moviegoers to the likes of Dracula, Frankenstein and The Bride of Frankenstein an in the 1930s. Universal first brought back The Mummy –– first played by the legendary Boris Karloff — for a trilogy of movies starting in 1999. The first two in the trilogy were blockbuster hits, but the last of the films lost its creative mojo and the franchise bowed out quietly in 2008.
In this fresh reboot of the franchise, the studio hired director Alex Kurtzman to help create a modern version of The Mummy, starring Sofia Boutella (Kingsman: The Secret Service) as the titular character, along with Tom Cruise, Russell Crowe and Annabelle Wallis (Annabelle).
Presented by Syfy Wire, the new video gives a peek at the series of transformation Princess Ahmanet goes through before she takes her final form in the movie. Featuring interviews with Cruise, Boutella, Kurtzman, and key crew members on the film, we learn more about the backstory for Ahmanet, who was mummified instead of taking her rightful place as pharaoh in ancient Egypt; beginning her modern day transformation as a literal bag of bones, held together by rags. From there, her feeding frenzy begins as she progresses into the frightening being that battles Cruise and company in the film.
Based on the trailers and behind the scenes looks at the film so far, the new version of The Mummy clearly steers away from the lighter tone of its immediate predecessor (the first two films in the trilogy were written and directed by Stephen Sommers), and is going for straight-up horror. Kurtzman is no doubt taking his job seriously, and wants fans to feel what they’re seeing on screen. He says:
“What I feel really separates great monster movies from other typical horror movies is that there’s a real emotional investment in the characters.”
From all indications, The Mummy looks to be kick-butt introduction to the new wave of reboots of the Universal monster movie genre. And with the remake of The Bride of Frankenstein taking shape with the hiring of Beauty and the Beast director Bill Condon (who explored the life of director James Whale during the making of the original Bride in Gods and Monsters), the reboots are showing tremendous promises as they’re unearthed from Universal vault of rich stories.
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Key Release Dates
The Mummy
Release Date:2017-06-09
