Universal is seemingly continuing to grow its roster of modern Universal Monsters movies, with The Mummy prequel reportedly next on the slate.
The industry scooper, Daniel Richtman, reports in a post on Patreon that The Mummy will be resurrected again in prequel form. He writes, “The Mummy PREQUEL movie now in development at Universal with Wes Tooke (Midway, The Rescue) writing the script.“
New The Mummy movie prequel
There’s nothing more on it at this time. So we don’t know if this is a prequel to Karl Freund’s 1932 movie starring Boris Karloff. Or if it’s based on Stephen Sommers’s beloved 1999 remake starring Brendan Fraser. Perhaps it’d be the solid choice with the latter’s 25th anniversary this year and its potent nostalgia element.
In addition, writer Tooke is already connected to a mystery Universal Monsters revival. In 2020, it was reported a reunion between 22 Jump Street’s Channing Tatum, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller was coming. That was to be a “a modern day, tongue-in-cheek thriller inspired by Universal’s classic monster legacy.” Putting two and two together, that does sound more like The Mummy prequel is loosely related to Sommers’s movie.
Previously, in 2017, a failed attempt at creating a Dark Universe began with The Mummy, starring Tom Cruise. Subsequently, Universal quietly went back to the drawing board. The new plan has been a series of modern adaptations that share no narrative connections. That began with Leigh Whannell’s The Invisible Man, starring Elizabeth Moss. More recently, we’ve had two distinct Dracula adaptations with 2023’s Renfield and The Last Voyage of the Demeter. Then, this year, we got Dracula’s Daughter reimagining Abigail from Scream duo Radio Silence. Beyond that, Whannell returns with a remake of the Wolf Man that’s currently filming.
The story of The Mummy prequel, whichever film it draws from, should be based on the usual tale. Imhotep, the cursed High Priest, comes back to life as a living dead creature, determined to resurrect his lost love.
