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James Wan shares how Lee Cronin's The Mummy is different: ‘We are coming out with a scary version of this particular IP’
The Mummy returns with an audacious and twisted retelling. Producer James Wan reflected on what makes the character so enduring.
The Mummy is one of the most iconic franchises in the horror universe, and fans are eagerly waiting to see how Lee Cronin's The Mummy rethinks the horror for a new setting and for a new audience. At the film’s promotional event in LA, producer James Wan spoke about reimagining the Mummy for modern audiences and reflected on what makes the character so enduring and compelling.
How is this version different?
In a statement, James said, "I feel there's this mystery to it (Mummy). The idea to be buried for thousands of years and we unearth them today. The idea about the potential stories that come with this is so interesting, the fact that this person must have been important enough to do all this ritual and be buried in a very special way...it's like a time capsule that we are discovering them now all these years later..that's what makes it fascinating..."
‘Mummy has such a history’
Highlighting the cinematic history of the franchise, Wan added, "With the marketplace the way it is, we knew that the film needed to be special, something a bit different that we hadn’t quite seen before. And especially because the Mummy has such a history. You go all the way back to what Universal was doing in the early 1930s, and then you have the great Hammer Horror films, with Christopher Lee playing the Mummy - there have been so many iterations of the Mummy along the way. As long as cinema history, in a lot of ways. It's such a great iconic character. So, I think it's great that we are coming out with a scary version of this particular IP again."
Lee Cronin previously directed the 2023 hit Evil Dead Rise. The film was a huge box office success, collecting $147 million worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing film of the series. It was Wan who reached out to Cronin to direct this version, after seeing Evil Dead Rise.
The official synopsis for Lee Cronin's The Mummy reads, “The young daughter of a journalist disappears into the desert without a trace—eight years later, the broken family is shocked when she is returned to them. What should be a joyful reunion turns into a living nightmare.” The film stars Jack Reynor, Natalie Grace, Laia Costa, and May Calamawy. It is set to release in theatres on April 17. It is distributed by Warner Bros India.
