The new version of The Mummy is coming to theaters on April 17, 2026. The movie comes from Lee Cronin, the director behind the 2023 horror hit Evil Dead Rise. But instead of excitement, the movie is getting strong negative reactions from fans. The main reason? Brendan Fraser is not in it.
The first trailer dropped online and fans quickly made their feelings clear. They want the old The Mummy back with Fraser playing Rick O’Connell. The 1999 movie mixed action, comedy, and horror perfectly. Many people grew up watching that film and the two sequels that followed.
What Is Lee Cronin’s The Mummy Actually About
The new movie has a very different story. A journalist and his wife lose their young daughter named Katie in the desert. She goes missing for eight full years. Then one day, she shows up again. But she was found inside a 3,000-year-old sarcophagus with 57 other people. The parents take her home, but something is terribly wrong with her. The half-dead looking girl brings terror to the family.
Jack Reynor (Midsommar) and Laia Costa (Victoria) play the parents. May Calamawy (Moon Knight), Veronica Falcón (Queen of the South), and Hayat Kamille (Vikings: Valhalla) also star. Natalie Grace plays the daughter Katie.
Cronin described his movie as a mix between two famous films. He said it is “almost one part Poltergeist and one part Seven.” That means more horror and less adventure.
Why Fans Are Angry About No Brendan Fraser
The internet reacted very strongly to the trailer. Social media filled with complaints from people who wanted a proper sequel to the 1999 movie. Fraser won an Oscar for The Whale in 2023 and is more popular now than ever. Many feel this was the perfect time to bring him back.
One person on X wrote, “There is only one Mummy movie that we are waiting for, and this isn’t it. Come back when Mummy 4 is ready.” Another fan said, “We need Brendan Fraser to stop this Mummy.”
The jokes also came fast. One user posted, “Who sees their kid like that and thinks, let’s take her home, lol.” Another added, “No hospital would release a child in that condition, and no sane parents would want to bring a child home in that condition.”
Some fans tried to defend the movie. One person wrote, “I’m disappointed it’s not the Brendan Fraser’s The Mummy sequel that we’ve been asking for.” Another said, “The Mummy we did not ask for, but fine … I’ll see it.”
The Confusion With Two Different Mummy Movies
Here is where things get tricky. There are actually two different The Mummy projects happening at the same time. Cronin’s movie has nothing to do with Universal’s classic monster franchise. It is being made by New Line Cinema with Blumhouse and Atomic Monster producing.
The other project is a real sequel to the Brendan Fraser films. The Mummy 4 is in development with Radio Silence (the team behind Ready or Not and Scream 2022) attached to direct. David Coggeshall is writing the script. Reports say Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz will return for this movie.
This has created major confusion for regular moviegoers. They see a trailer for a movie called The Mummy and expect to see Fraser. When they don’t, they get angry. One fan perfectly explained the situation online.
“Blumhouse is trying to make a scary Mummy movie, but we want the fun adventure Mummy. Two completely different things.”
Lee Cronin Turned Down Evil Dead Rise 2 For This
Cronin made a big career choice to direct this movie. He told SFX magazine that he said no to making a sequel to Evil Dead Rise. That film made $147 million at the box office on a $19 million budget. A sequel would have been an easy success.
“The risk was not making a sequel to my last movie, because that was really easy for me to do,” Cronin explained. “I said no, ultimately, because I wanted to do something else, and I like to take a risk and gamble.”
He also talked about the pressure of making a movie with such a famous name. “The other risk factor is there’s brilliant movies called The Mummy but they’ve also been there since the 30s. It’s not just about Brendan Fraser, 25 years ago.”
Cronin said he enjoyed Tom Cruise’s 2017 version of The Mummy, which many people did not like. That movie lost money and killed Universal’s planned Dark Universe franchise. “Maybe the Tom Cruise one wasn’t necessarily as well received, although I really enjoyed that film,” Cronin said.
He ended with a strong statement about his choice. “Repeating a trick is a sin to me.”
The Strange Blumhouse Denial That Made Things Worse
On April 2, 2026, Blumhouse posted a strange message on X. The company said, “Brendan Fraser is not in Lee Cronin’s The Mummy.” The problem? Almost no one was seriously asking if he was in it before that post.
Fans immediately saw this as reverse psychology. One person replied, “This is obviously confirmation that he is.” Another wrote, “Is this reverse psychology?” A third fan pointed out that April Fool’s Day had just passed, so it could not be a joke.
This made people dig deeper. Some now believe Fraser might have a secret cameo in the film. But there are major problems with that idea. The 1999 movies belong to Universal Pictures. Cronin’s movie belongs to Warner Bros. and New Line. Those two studios would need to make a deal for Fraser to appear as Rick O’Connell.
The time period also does not match. The Fraser movies take place in the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s. Cronin’s movie takes place in modern times.
How This Movie Is Different From The 1999 Version
The 1999 The Mummy directed by Stephen Sommers was a family friendly action movie. It had scary moments but also lots of jokes. Fraser’s character was a funny, brave adventurer. The movie felt like Indiana Jones with monsters.
Cronin’s version is a straight horror movie. The MPAA gave it an R rating for “strong disturbing violent content, gore, language and brief drug use.” That means no kids under 17 without a parent. The 1999 movie was PG-13.
The tone is completely different. One early review described the daughter Katie’s look as having “terrifying marionette-like features.” The trailer shows a spider crawling out of a corpse’s mouth. This is not a movie for people who want funny one-liners and desert action scenes.
What The Cast And Crew Have Said
Cronin promised from the start that his movie would be different. When the project was first announced in December 2024, he said, “This will be unlike any Mummy movie you ever laid eyeballs on before. I’m digging deep into the earth to raise something very ancient and very frightening.”
James Wan (The Conjuring, Aquaman) and Jason Blum (The Purge, Paranormal Activity, Get Out) are producing. Both are known for horror movies, not big adventure films. This matches the direction Cronin is taking.
The cast has praised the script but details remain secret. Filming took place in Spain and Ireland and wrapped in June 2025.
The Mummy 4 With Brendan Fraser Is Really Happening
For fans who want the old version back, good news exists. The Mummy 4 with Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz is moving forward. Radio Silence (Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett) will direct. They made the 2022 Scream movie and the 2019 hit Ready or Not.
Variety reported this news in November 2025. The script comes from David Coggeshall, who wrote the horror sequel Orphan: First Kill. No release date has been set yet.
This means fans will eventually get the sequel they want. But they have to wait. And in the meantime, Cronin’s very different version arrives first.
Also Read:
Final Trailer Released Before April Release
The final trailer for Lee Cronin’s The Mummy dropped on March 31, 2026. It shows more of the horror elements and the daughter’s creepy transformation. The movie comes out in just a few weeks.
The release schedule is set. The film will open in theaters across the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, India, and other countries on April 17, 2026. Tickets are already on sale at major theater chains.
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