Brendan Fraser Breaks Silence on The Mummy 4 Return Reports

After winning an Oscar for his gut-wrenching performance in The Whale, working with Martin Scorsese in Killers of the Flower Moon, and headlining this year’s crowd-pleaser Rental Family, Brendan Fraser has put a few strong years together and experienced a most-deserved comeback. With the actor as popular as ever, plans are in motion to revive his hit franchise: The Mummy. Earlier this month, it was reported that Fraser was reuniting with co-star Rachel Weisz for a new Mummy installment to be directed by Radio Silence duo Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett. As fans eagerly await further updates on the project, Fraser has addressed his impending return.

Speaking with IndieWire, Fraser was asked about the industry trade reports detailing the new Mummy film. “What you saw in Variety and the trades as wrote is a spec piece, but if my lips weren’t sealed, I would confirm everything that you already know,” Fraser said, playing coy about the movie’s status. “However, I’m hopeful. I know that there are a lot of fans who would love to see this happen.”

Now Is the Perfect Time for a Mummy Revival

News of a fourth Mummy movie starring Fraser was an exciting development for a few reasons. First, the original trilogy has stood the test of time and remains a beloved action-adventure film series for generations of viewers. Additionally, having a Mummy revival coincide with Fraser’s recent hot streak is smart, allowing Universal to strike when the iron is hot and capitalize on the actor’s resurgence in popularity. There’s also the fact that Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett are the ideal directors for The Mummy 4, as they’ve already demonstrated a keen ability to breathe new life into long-standing franchises (their work with their Scream films).

The Mummy could also fill a void in the blockbuster movie landscape, giving audiences an old-school pulpy adventure to enjoy. Fraser’s first Mummy films were favorably compared to the Indiana Jones series, a franchise that is now on ice following the underwhelming box office performance of Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. Video game adaptation Uncharted tried to emerge as a compelling alternative, but development on the planned sequel has been slow. With Tom Holland continuing to play Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it’s unknown when Uncharted 2 could come to fruition, so The Mummy has a golden opportunity to cement itself as the premier action-adventure franchise. If The Mummy 4 is successful, there would surely be interest in more follow-ups.

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Some fans could be concerned by Fraser’s comments, as the actor doesn’t explicitly confirm The Mummy 4 is actually in the works. However, his response reads as standard industry practice. The trade reports mentioned Fraser and Weisz were “in talks,” signaling deals hadn’t been officially signed yet. Until then, Fraser has to be coy about his involvement, using phrasing like “hopeful.” Things aren’t reported in industry trades unless they’re essentially on the precipice of happening, but there’s always an outside shot something falls through.

It doesn’t sound like The Mummy 4 is going to fall apart, however. Universal seems to have assembled many of the required pieces already, and now it’s just a matter of ironing out the rest of the details before they can move forward to the next stage. Hopefully it doesn’t take too long for The Mummy 4 to come to fruition. If there are directors onboard and stars in talks to headline, the project could be a priority for Universal, which means they won’t want to wait around too long to get the movie off the ground.

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