Remember Universal’s short-lived Dark Universe that died an agonizing death when The Mummy opened in theaters to lower than expected numbers? It may have had a short lifespan, but it looks like the Dark Universe could potentially be rising from the grave. Jason Blum, founder and CEO of Blumhouse, says he is interested in bringing the Dark Universe back to life. More on the story here below.

Let’s face it, Universal’s Dark Universe was a very ambitious plan that no one really was on board for. Though contemporary takes on the classic Universal monsters sounded like a good idea on the surface, the results were anything but that. It all started with The Mummy, the Tom Cruise-starring vehicle that was supposed to launch the universe. The film performed well-below expectations, and what followed made things even worse for the potential universe. Bride of Frankenstein, directed by Bill Condon and starring Javier Bardem as the Monster and possibly Angelina Jolie as the title character, had been put on hold. Reports stated that it was to fix some of the script issues. While that may be true, it was a sign that things weren’t going well. And this latest bit may be the final nail in the coffin.

According to a new report, the Dark Universe may be dead as key figures like Alex Kurtzman and Chris Morgan are now leaving it behind, forcing Universal to rethink the interconnected monster world that they are creating. More on the story below.

The Mummy: Volume 1: Palimpsest TPB
Written by Peter Milligan
Art by Ronilson Freire
Colors by Ming Sen & Dijjo Lima
Letters by Simon Bowland
Titan Comics
Release Date: June 28, 2017
Cover Price: $19.99

Cycles. Everything in existence seems to be cyclical. Take this comic for instance. The Mummy: Volume 1: Palimpsest is a rebirth of the mummy movie franchise that Hammer Films brought to the silver screen in 1959. These were, to some extent, a rebirth themselves from the old black and white films decades earlier. But what Hammer Films did was modernize the characters and connect to a whole new generation of fans.

So, in the spirit of it all, Titan Comics has partnered with Hammer to create this all new adventure. Originally a five issue mini-series, this trade paperback combines all of Ronilson Freire‘s sequential art with a whole lot more in the way of galleries, history, and commentary. With each resurrection of our iconic main character, we see some subtle (and not so subtle) differences that reflect the times in which we live. This concept is explored by Peter Milligan in the comic script in such a way as to make as obvious point of different life is today than what it once was.

Universal’s Dark Universe will reintroduce those classic Universal Monster films that terrified us as kids to a younger generation of audiences who might not be familiar with them. In this world of gods and monsters, the shadowy organization Prodigium works hard to find, examine, and contain these evil monsters. With Alex Kurtzman’s The Mummy opening in theaters this weekend, the film opens the door to an all new terrifying universe where those same gods and monsters that used to scare us now exist and live amongst us today.

In The Mummy, the first Dark Universe installment, Annabelle Wallis plays Jenny, an archeologist who uses two soldiers of fortune, Nick (Tom Cruise) and Vail (Jake Johnson), to find an ancient sarcophagus that has sealed away one of the most powerful evils on earth, Princess Ahmanet (Sofia Boutella). But Nick’s reckless behavior unleashes that evil, and it is up to Nick, Jenny, and the rest of Prodigium to find out how to stop Ahmanet from succeeding with her plans to complete her ritual.

We were fortunate enough to participate in a phone interview with Wallis prior to the film’s release, where she talked about what it was like to film with Tom Cruise, the physicality of the shoot, doing her own stunts, what monsters scared her as a kid, and more. Find out what she had to say here below.

For New Girl star Jake Johnson, The Mummy was a way for him to expand his career into action films, though he still retains his small-screen witty and charming sense of humor. In Universal’s new reboot, the actor plays Vail, a soldier of fortune, who joins Tom Cruise’s Nick Morton on global quests to raid tombs and swipe treasures for profits. However, they come across one tomb they should have never unearthed, and without realizing it, they release a powerful evil bent on reclaiming what was once her’s.

We were recently invited to participate in a phone interview with Johnson to talk about his experience on set of The Mummy, his training, doing his own stunts, and more. Check out what he had to say here below.

The Mummy is the first film of Universal Pictures’ Dark Universe, a shared universe of rebooted versions of the studio’s classic monsters. Though it still has a long way to go to be as prominent as the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the DC Extended Universe, the studio already has plans to expand their world of gods and monsters with new versions of Bride of Frankenstein, The Wolfman, Creature From The Black Lagoon, and Dracula. And much more to come.

Directed by Alex Kurtzman, The Mummy follows Nick Morton (Tom Cruise) a modern-day treasure seeker who accidentally unearths a sarcophagus that was meant to seal away an ancient evil. Now that she is reawakened, she seeks to complete her malevolent ritual and terrors that will surely bring about the end of humankind.

We were fortunate enough to participate in a phone conference with our fellow journalists to talk to Kurtzman about what it means to him to bring these classic monsters to the big screen once more, the future of the shared universe, and what makes these monsters resonate with today’s audiences. For more on this plus a little bit on what to expect from the Bride of Frankenstein, click below.

The Mummy (2017)
Director: Alex Kurtzman
Writers: David Koepp, Christopher McQuarrie, Dylan Kussman
Cast: Tom Cruise, Sofia Boutella, Annabelle Wallis, Jake Johnson, Courtney B. Vance, Russell Crowe
Distributor: Universal Pictures
Rated PG-13 | 107 Minutes
Release Date: June 9, 2017

“Welcome to a new world of gods and monsters.”

If you’re a moviegoer in the year 2017, odds are you’re familiar with the concept of a “shared cinematic universe.” Whether it’s the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s The Avengers or the DC Extended Universe’s upcoming Justice League, we understand that these franchises are built on standalone stories set within the same continuity, leading to crossover events and team-up films.

The idea of a shared cinematic universe came into being over 70 years ago with the emergence of Universal Monsters. Following their popular silent films, 1923’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame and 1925’s The Phantom of the Opera, Universal Studios began developing talkies based on other classic horror characters. 1931’s Dracula and Frankenstein got things started, followed by The Mummy (1932), The Invisible Man (1933), 1935’s Bride of Frankenstein, and The Wolf Man (1941).

This weekend, Universal will launch the start of their brand new Dark Universe monsters franchise with a reboot of The Mummy. Directed by Alex Kurtzman, the film will bring together some of our favorite classic monsters in an all new shared universe involving Universal Monsters. It will be followed up by the Bill Condon-directed Bride of Frankenstein, starring Javier Bardem; Creature of the Black Lagoon from screenwriters Jeff Pinkner and Will Beall; The Invisible Man, starring Johnny Depp; and Van Helsing, from Prometheus scribe Jon Spaihts, Arrival writer Eric Heisserer, and Dan Mazeau.

But that is just the beginning. Because Kurtzman says there are more Dark Universe films on the way. In a new interview, the man responsible for building this new Universal Monsters shared universe says Dracula, Frankenstein, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and The Phantom of the Opera are being developed. More on the story below.

Shared universes can be a tough sell nowadays, especially now since they can be perceived as derivative. However, if a studio puts the right creative minds together, these shared universes can be very successful.

Universal Pictures will take their first steps into launching their own starting with a reboot of The Mummy. And they are confident enough in their monsters filled universe that they have announced that the series of films reviving the studio’s classic characters for a new generation will be known as their “Dark Universe.” More on the story below.

Sometimes explorers should just leave ancient temples be. But where’s the fun in that? We’ve all heard the story before of an ancient evil being unleashed on accident, on purpose, or just because someone is curious. It’s all been done before. But for Universal’s reboot of The Mummy, it’s a little bit different. That’s because it’s a part of a dark universe of monsters.

In the film’s final action-packed trailer we see Tom Cruise being attacked by ancient monsters and hurled out of vehicles. All the while, audiences will “Witness The Beginning of a Dark Universe.” Check out the final trailer below.