Earlier this week, Universal unleashed thefirst trailerfor the studio’s highly-anticipated reboot ofThe Mummy, which featured our first look at the new monster in action, played bySofia Boutella. The actress is the first ever female Mummy in the franchise’s storied history, but as it turns out, this gender swap almost never happened. DirectorAlex Kurtzmanrevealed in a new interview that he was initially planning on makingThe Mummya male character. Here’s what he had to say.
“I’ll let you in on a secret. There was a moment when I had sort of rendered a design that I liked for a male version ofThe Mummy. And in that version ofThe Mummy, theMummyhad been born with a skin pigmentation that at the time would have made him really sort of an outcast. And I thought it was an interesting backstory, because it began to tell the story of someone who had been bullied, which I found topical. I was reaching for a way to make theMummya character who is relatable, understandable, and that spoke to issues that we’re dealing with now.”
Almost exactly one year ago today,Sofia Boutella, who had a breakout role inKingsman: The Secret Serviceand also starred in this year’sStar Trek Beyond, entered talks to play the title character, thanks toAlex Kurtzmanchanging his mind about the Mummy’s gender. The director continued in his new interview withCinemaBlend, that this change was made after he saw the post-credit scene in 2014’sX-Men: Days of Future Past. Here’s what the director said about why he changedThe Mummyfrom a male to a female.
“I was going down that road, and then I saw the end ofDays of Future Past. And they had the character thatOscar Isaacwound up playing as a boy, and it was, I kid you not, the exact same design. And I was like, ‘Oh, man! That is not good!’ And actually it was the catalyst […] I had had that voice in my head for some time to make ita woman, and that was the moment where, the minute I saw that post-credits scene, I went, ‘We have to start over.'”
Thought safely entombed in a crypt deep beneath the unforgiving desert, an ancient queen (Sofia Boutella) whose destiny was unjustly taken from her, is awakened in our current day, bringing with her malevolence grown over millennia and terrors that defy human comprehension. From the sweeping sands of the Middle East through hidden labyrinths under modern-day London,The Mummybrings a surprising intensity and balance of wonder and thrills in an imaginative new take that ushers in a new world of gods and monsters.
Tom Cruiseleads a diverse cast ofThe Mummythat also includesRussell Crowe,Annabelle Wallis,Jake Johnson,Courtney B. Vance,Javier Botet,Chico Kenzari,Shihoko NagaiandSolomon Taiwo Justified.Alex KurtzmandirectsThe Mummyfrom a script byChristopher McQuarrieandJon Spaihts, with the director also producing alongsideChris Morgan. BothAlex KurtzmanandChris Morganare overseeing the entire Universal monster franchise, which will include new versions ofThe Invisible Man,The Wolf Man,Frankensteinand more.
