Film news: Brendan Fraser ready ‘to give the fans what they want’ with ‘The Mummy 4’
Brendan Fraser is gearing up to return to his biggest film franchise, with the recent news that a fourth The Mummy film is in the works.
Fraser and original co-star Rachel Weisz will star in this fourth instalment, made by Ready or Not directing duo Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett.
The Oscar-winning actor is “ready to give the fans what they want”, writes Film News Blitz’s Dan Lawrence.
‘The Mummy 4’
After the smash-hit The Mummy (1999) and The Mummy Returns (2001), Fraser’s run as Rick O'Connell ended with The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008).
His Hollywood career faded not long after, due to personal circumstances and the terrifying ordeal of being the victim of an alleged sexual assault.
Fraser shot back to stardom with his Oscar-winning efforts in The Whale, and he’s now coming full circle with his return to O’Connell and the world of The Mummy.
Speaking to the Associated Press ahead of his new film, Rental Family, Fraser spoke of his last appearance in The Mummy franchise and his eagerness to return
“The one I wanted to make was never made,” Fraser began.
“The third one was a model of…how can I say this to the AP reporter? NBC had the rights to broadcast the Olympics that year. So they put two together, and we went to China.
“Working in Shanghai, an incredible experience. I’m proud of the third one because I think it’s a good standalone movie.
“We picked up and did what we do with a different crew on deck and gave it our best shot.
“But the one I wanted to make is forthcoming. And I’ve been waiting 20 years for this call.
“Sometimes it was loud, sometimes it was a faint telegraph. Now? It’s time to give the fans what they want.”
There’s no release date yet for this new The Mummy film, which will be the first since the dismal 2017 reboot starring Tom Cruise.
Fraser’s films were full of light, humour and swashbuckling adventure, and he previously revealed to Variety that’s why Cruise’s film didn’t hit the mark.
“The ingredient that we had going for our Mummy, which I didn’t see in that film, was fun,” Fraser explained.
“That was what was lacking in [Tom Cruise’s] incarnation.
“It was too much of a straight-ahead horror movie. The Mummy should be a thrill ride, but not terrifying and scary.”
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