The Verdict
You looked at the smoking crater Universal left when its Dark Universe Mummy belly-flopped, and decided the concept deserved a real horror director instead of an action star. That instinct was correct.
So you brought your Evil Dead Rise sensibility: gothic, gory, family-horror through a supernatural lens, a family reunited with their long-missing daughter who comes back deeply, terribly wrong. The premise has teeth.
Then the mixed reviews and a respectable but not triumphant $90 million worldwide tell the real story: you nailed the dread and the visuals, but the screenplay underneath the mood is where the bandages come loose.
What it nails
- ▲Reclaiming 'The Mummy' as horror rather than blockbuster spectacle is the smartest creative decision in the project, fully unrelated to the failed Dark Universe version.
- ▲Cronin's gory, gothic craft is the real draw, the man knows how to make a domestic space feel cursed.
- ▲The family-horror engine, your missing daughter returns and something is fundamentally wrong with her, is a primal hook with built-in emotional stakes.
- ▲The Lily Sullivan cameo as a teacher is a tidy nod to Evil Dead Rise fans without derailing the film for everyone else.
What it botches
- ▼Atmosphere is not a plot, and the mixed reviews point at a story that coasts on dread when it needed structure.
- ▼A 46 on Metacritic is the sound of critics admiring the wrapping while questioning the gift inside.
- ▼Reinventing an icon means you owe the audience a reason this version exists beyond 'now with more gore,' and that thesis stays fuzzy.
- ▼The cast, Reynor, Costa, Calamawy, is capable, but capable performances cannot patch a script that prioritizes set-pieces over the people in them.
Who it's for
Evil Dead Rise fans, gothic-horror sickos who want practical gore and dread, and anyone happy to see The Mummy taken back from the action-franchise machine.
Who should skip
People wanting the swashbuckling adventure Mummy, or anyone who needs a screenplay as sharp as its visuals. The vibes outpace the substance here.
The whole story lives on the hub