Cinematical has just received a batch of exclusive images from The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (see gallery below for more). The first poster for this sequel hit the other day, and I imagine a trailer will be knocking on all our doors real soon. In this third Mummy installment (technically fourth if you include The Scorpion King), father-and-son duo Rick (Brendan Fraser) and Alex O'Connell (Luke Ford) find themselves in the Far East where they unearth the mummy of the first Emperor of Qin. Needless to say, said Emperor (as played by Jet Li) is your basic, run-of-the-mill shape-shifting entity, cursed by a wizard centuries ago, and out to wreak some havoc. The beautiful Maria Bello and Michelle Yeoh round out the cast.
Rob Cohen directed this one, and if you like what you see in the gallery below, make sure to head on over to Rob's official Mummy production blog. Dude's been keeping that loaded with all sorts of tasty goodies ever since production first began, so definitely check that out, as well as the film's official website (which just went live). The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor arrives in theaters on August 1.
OK, so we all jumped the gun a little when the first image of what was being touted as the poster for The Mummy: Tomb of The Dragon Emperor hit the net. But, now Coming Soon has snapped a photo (that's only a little blurry) of the honest to goodness one-sheet for Rob Cohen's addition to the successful franchise.
By the looks of things, it was possibly an unfinished version that was released. So while it might look somewhat similar, there has been a big change. Now the poster has the entire cast on it. Rick O'Connell (Brendan Fraser) is front and center, along with Maria Bello as Evey, John Hannah as the bumbling brother Jonathan and son Alex (Luke Ford). Surprisingly, bad-guy Jet Li's photo is pretty far down on the poster, but I guess Universal wants to remind us about all the stuff we like about The Mummy in the first place right up front.
Stay tuned to Cinematical for the official poster release and hopefully we'll be getting a trailer sometime in the near future. Let's just hope we get the real thing this time. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor opens in theaters on August 1st.
You know, I am really trying not to be too hard on the latest installment of The Mummy franchise. I want to give the film a fair shot and all that, but it's getting pretty hard to keep the snark at bay when Universal insists on doing stuff like this. Over at Horror Movies.ca, they have posted what is said to be the first poster for The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (courtesy of Filmz.ru). You can see a small version to the right.
Over the last few months, there have plenty of production updates and a stray photo here and there. But other than the glowing praises of director Rob Cohen on the official production blog, most of the details of the film have been kept under wraps. What we do know is that this time Jet Li stars as an immortal emperor, and that Maria Bello is taking over the role of spunky Evelyn. Both Brendan Fraser and John Hannah have both returned in their original roles, and for the most part, it looks like the same old thing -- a movie chock full of cursed relics, plenty of 'adventuring,' and some kicking special effects.
But if we were to just look at this leaked poster, it would appear that this time the action is centered on a cursed take-out menu. Seriously, couldn't they have come up with something a little better than a Mortal Kombatrip-off? For the sake of everyone involved, I just hope this poster turns out to be a fake. If it isn't, I'm afraid this is just a sign of crappiness to come.
Well to be honest, my expectations for the latest installment of The Mummy aren't too high, so if I look on the bright side then maybe I will get a pleasant surprise after all. Director Rob Cohen has announced on his production blog that The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor has wrapped shooting in China. Starring Brendan Fraser as Rick O'Connell, this time, the O'Connells (Maria Bello, Fraser, and Luke Ford as their son, Alex) are bound for China to battle an immortal emperor (Jet Li). Rounding out the cast are John Hannah, who returns to play Evy's brother Jonathan, and Michelle Yeoh as a "double-crossing sorceress".
Cohen has made this particular announcement on his blog a veritable love fest for his cast. Cohen gushes over his new stars, Maria Bello as the 'new and improved' Evy, saying, "Her beauty and intelligence, wit and courage were something I appreciated each and every day". Jet Li wasn't left out either, and Cohen says that he was everything that "epitomizes graciousness, spiritual depth, and physical grace". Just because shooting has finished, there is still a lot of work ahead on the film, including somewhere around "800 visual effects shots" to be completed.
Considering no one was all that anxious for a third film in the series, the blog has maybe managed to improve things just a little. I know my opinion on the film has fluctuated wildly based on the few pictures that have been released so far. Just for the record: those opinions varied from everything from "Well, maybe this won't be so bad after all" to something with a lot more expletives in it that I probably shouldn't get into here. The Mummy 3 is set for release on August 1st, 2008.
Looking at this new promo still for The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, I now realize what the first two Mummymovies were missing: martial arts! Never mind the fact that Jet Li looks awesome in this shot. I'm just excited because there's no possible way that Brendan Fraser (aka "Rick O'Connell") is going to get out of this fight alive. Imagine how great this sequel would be if Fraser got his ass kicked. Yeah, unfortunately, Fraser probably does win the battle somehow. Or if he does get served in this scene, he will win out in the end. In that case: poor Jet Li. How could he ever live with himself if he's seen on the big screen defeated by the guy who played George of the Jungle and Dudley Do-Right?
The photo comes courtesy of Rob Cohen, the sequel's director, who has been blogging the production ever since shooting began over a month ago. Since, we have seen a photo of "the Terracotta Army" and a photo of Maria Bello, who took over the part of "Evy" after Rachel Weisz dropped out. There have also been some videos on the blog, including footage of Fraser shooting at a river, falling out of a tree and throwing himself in some mud. And if you are really excited about the martial arts, you will want to check out the video about the stunt team, which doesn't feature any actual fighting but is still interesting enough. Say what you will about Cohen's directorial skills, he may in fact be better than Stephen Sommers at least, and The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is sure to be the coolest installment of the series. Unless, that is, they decide to follow tradition and give us some really terrible CGI at the end. Pray that Jet Li doesn't end up rendered out of sand in the end.
Now is it just me or does Maria Bello look an awful lot like Geena Davis in this picture? Rob Cohen's production blog for The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor has posted the first picture of Bello as Evy (the role famously dumped by Rachel Weisz after two films). Just last month, Chris had reported on one of the first images to emerge from the production and for lack of a better word, it was pretty. Not much to see, but there was definitely some style there. Plus, let's be honest, it's not like expectations for this flick are all that high anyway, so I'll take what I can get thank you very much. As you probably know, The Mummy 3 will be heading in a different direction this time around, placing the action in China with martial arts master Jet Li filling in as the bad guy.
When Bello had spoken with Sci Fi Wire in September, she was quoted as saying her Evy, "...has the same name, but she's a very different character than Rachel played. She's a bad-ass action chick. I had to train a lot. I had to do wushu, a martial-art form, some kickboxing, swordfighting, rifle training for a couple of months before we even started shooting" A far cry from Weisz's plucky librarian, but as much as I like the idea of "bad-ass action chicks", I still think recasting the same role with a different actress was a bit of a mistake. According to Cohen, Li has just arrived on location in Montreal to film some of the more climatic battle scenes with returning hero Brendan Fraser (as Rick O'Connell -- who's also pictured in the above link) before moving on to shoot in China. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is scheduled for release on August 1st, 2008.
One of the great things about an art history education is that it can lend to the appreciation of bad movies. Take, for instance, the "Terracotta Army", which I happened to learn about in an introduction to art history class. The ancient statues are featured prominently in the second Mummysequel, titledThe Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. And since my class made me interested in the statues -- figures of warriors and horses that were buried near the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor in the Shaanxi province of China -- I am actually somewhat interested in seeing this movie, even though I'm neither a fan of the first two Mummy movies nor of director Rob Cohen, who took over the franchise from Stephen Sommers. Whether or not you too are familiar with the statues, you can see the ones reproduced for the movie in a great looking photo over at Cohen's blog (yes, he's blogging the production). Of course, if you are a cynic like myself, you will dismiss the coolness of the pic and continue your skepticism until the movie is released (and you'll probably not see it). But if you are also an artsy fartsy dork like myself, you might curiously attempt to at least see the movie for free when it arrives in theaters, if nothing else than to see how the art is presented on screen.
In other Mummy 3 news, Maria Bello, who has replaced actress Rachel Weisz as the character of Evelyn, spoke with SCI FI Wire recently about the role. She told them the character is the same person but she's now portrayed differently, as a "bad-ass action chick". For this, Bello had to train in the martial art of wushu, as well as in kickboxing, sword fighting and rifle shooting. Also, while rehearsing for the movie, she got a black eye from the butt of a Winchester. Those of you who thought she was sexy all beat up in that staircase scene in A History of Violence (I know you're out there) may hope she gains some more sightly bruises -- real or applied with makeup -- for the actual filming. As for me, I preferred Bello in the more-innocent cheerleader scene, so I'd rather its only the bad guys who get the bruises -- though as I said, I'll mostly just be looking at the reproduced art work. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor will be in theaters August 1, 2008.
You know, if I hadn't seen any of Rob Cohen's films, I might almost feel sorry for the guy. Having already been accused of making one of the worst films of 2005, fans of The Mummy franchise have been less than thrilled when the director was tasked with breathing some life back into the series. But, Cohen has decided to let fans in on the production with his blog for The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. Launched last week, there isn't tons of information available, but Cohen did take the time to address some of the questions plaguing the film, mainly the loss of Rachel Weisz. Cohen says, "Rachel decided to leave the franchise many years ago, after 'The Mummy 2' finished shooting. We all had hopes that she would change her mind but I never had the opportunity to meet her or talk to her." Cohen also confirmed that he has "shot about five weeks of our twenty-week schedule".
Dragon Emperor reunites Brendan Fraser and John Hannah from the original films, alongside Maria Bello, Jet Li, Michelle Yeoh, Anthony Wong, and Luke Ford. The now-retired adventurers Rick and Evelyn O'Connell have a fully grown son (Ford), who has taken up the family business of archeology. This time, the action leaves Egypt far behind and instead is based in China and Li stars as the cursed Dragon Emperor. Cohen writes, "The family is reunited and high adventure ensues: crash landings, treks thru the Himalayas, Yeti, avalanches (bigger than the one I did in XXX), Shangri-la, three-headed dragons, pools of eternal life, epic battles, a shape-shifting Jet Li....I could go on but I don't want to give it all away" -- sure, it sounds impressive, but I still wouldn't hold my breath. The Mummy 3 is set for release on July 30th, 2008.
When it was finally confirmed that Rachel Weisz had opted out of the latest installment of The Mummy franchise, it was not a good sign that the new film was going to recapture a little of its former glory. Bloody Disgusting got the scoop that Universal has finally secured their cast for the third film in the series -- technically it's the fourth, but I never really counted The Scorpion King. Weisz had long since been replaced by Maria Bello and the film had already started production before this last round of casting was announced. Already confirmed was Brendan Fraser reprising his role as Rick O'Connell. But the latest additions to the cast include John Hannah -- reprising his role as the bumbling brother in-law Jonathan (the only actor aside from Fraser who's returning), Anthony Wong, and Alex Pettyfer. The cast also includes Jet Li, Michelle Yeoh, and Luke Ford as Fraser's son. The story this time centers on adventure-seeker O'Connell and his son as they unearth the cursed first Emperor of China (Li).
Weisz was not the only one who chose not to return for another go round, as director Stephen Sommers also passed. Instead, Universal hired Fast and The Furious director Rob Cohen. The script was written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, two writer-producers from TV's Smallville that have worked on scripts for Spider-Man 2 and Shanghai Knights. The production is currently on location in Montreal, Canada, and will also be shooting in China. Rumors had surfaced that the script for the film was less than stellar and that was what had prompted the departure of Weisz. We will have to see if she made the right decision when the film hits theaters Summer 2008.
If the news had been "Maria Bello to replace Rachel Weisz as the female lead in the Mummy series," that wouldn't be all that strange. But word from Variety is that Maria Bello will be stepping in to play the exact same role. Ugh, it's always weird when this happens, isn't it?
Apparently Ms. Weisz just wasn't interested in returning for a third mummy-go-round, and no amount of Universal green would change her mind. Which means than a very fine actress, albeit one not exactly known for big-budget adventure movies, has earned a place in one of next summer's big-time tentpole pictures. Good for her. (Ms. Bello is best known for recent work in World Trade Center, Thank You for Smoking and A History of Violence, in which she was really damn excellent.)
As reported earlier, the third Mummy flick will star Brendan Fraser as bandage-battling adventurer Rick O'Connell, Luke Ford as his 20-something son, Michelle Yeoh as a nasty wizard (?) and Jet Li as a mummified ol' emperor. Universal is hoping that the Rob Cohen flick (which was written by Smallville creators Alfred Gough and Miles Millar) will re-invigorate the franchise and bring in lots of young new spectators. Guess we'll find out next summer.
The guy's apparently done a whole lot of TV work in the past several years, but actor Luke Ford is pretty much a nobody to the movie geeks of the world. That'll change soon, because the guy was just cast to play the 20-something son of Brendan Fraser's Rick O'Connell character in The Mummy Part 3. (Although I highly doubt it'll be called The Mummy Part 3 when it hits your local theaters ... and no, Rachel Weisz still isn't interested in stopping back for a third mummy-go-round).
It looks like Universal's long-term plan is to have the Mummy series morph into a father-son franchise, and director Rob Cohen couldn't be happier with the 26-year-old Australian actor: "He tested against four much more established actors, and he was magic when he read with Brendan," is what he told Variety. The same source indicates that six different actresses have been tested to play the role of "Evie," although that might just be a last-ditch effort to get Ms. Weisz back on board. Frankly it'd be a whole lot smarter to just write the character out completely than to re-cast it with a different actress. It always feels weird when producers do that. If they really wanted to play hardball they could say Evie died and that's why Rick O'Connell's new girlfriend is played by Elizabeth Banks.
The Mummy 3 plot involves adventures in the Himalayas and battles with crazy shape-shifting mummies and freaky witches played by Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh. Production begins on July 27, and the flick is scheduled to hit multiplexes precisely one year later. (OK, maybe not to the day.) And if you're extra-skeptical about this project, keep in mind that the screenplay comes from Miles Millar and Alfred Gough -- and you could certainly do worse on a "Part 3" than that particular writing team.
It looks like all is not well with Mummy 3. Last week Erik finally confirmed that Rachel Weisz would not be returning to reprise her role as the plucky librarian/adventurer. So while the official reason provided by Weisz's reps was scheduling conflicts and quality time with her family, sources for IESB .net say the real problem might have been the script. Early reviews of the Mummy script weren't favorable, but now IESB's sources say the script is being re-tooled as a father and son adventure to accommodate Weisz's absence -- which sounds a little too close for comfort to some of the ideas bandying around for the latest Indiana Jones. Now titled Mummy 3: Curse of the Dragon, the film leaves Egypt behind (and Oded Fehr for that matter), and is set in China. The story will have our hero, Rick O'Connell, battling cursed Terra Cotta Warriors. Jet Li is still in talks for the film, but consensus seems to be that his signing is pretty much a foregone conclusion.
Weisz had been mentioned as a possible contender for Sin City 2, which according to Rosario Dawson, is shooting this summer. This could lend some weight to the rumor that Weisz is joining Rodrguez's cast and maybe is the source of her "scheduling conflict." Either way, bailing out of Mummy 3might be the smarter choice, Enough bad word of mouth just might be the final "nail in the sarcophagus" for the franchise. I guess we will have to wait until Summer 2008 to find out.
To further fuel the fire that started in 2005 when IESB reviewed a script for theMummy 3, there are now reports that the hunt for the younger O'Connell is on. To recap, The Mummy Returns introduced Alex O'Connell, Rick and Evelyn's 10-year-old son. Now, the young boy will be making a return in the sequel, but as a young man. Rumor has it that a hunt is on to find a young, 20-ish star to play the young, poker playing, gun-toting lover boy.
Part of the script has Alex and Rick comparing weapons in snow-covered woods. Rick's gun tastes run old-school, while Alex loves the new machinery, such as the Walther P-38 and the not-yet-released AK-47. According to IGN, this places the tale some time prior to 1947... and after 1938. Regardless, it's at least 10 years after the Mummy Returns, which took place in 1933. While neither Evy or Ardeth Bey are mentioned, Jonathan, Evy's brother, is.
In more specific news, IGN also reports that Rob Cohen was rather loose-lipped about sequel news while at a Q&A in California. According to their source, Cohen said that he is definitely directing the latest sequel, Jet Li will play the Mummy (head of a group of mummies that were the Teracotta Army), it will take place in China and Michelle Yeoh has also been cast. Yoeh's people say that she has not been cast, but they don't seem to have ruled out the possibility. So, there you have it. They're probably traveling to China and are going to take the Indiana Jones route -- delving into the whole father/son dynamic. Hopefully, at the very least, they'll take out most of the Jones rip-offs that IESB mentioned.
I've always thought if you wanted a textbook example on how to ruin a viable movie franchise, then you need not look further than The Mummy Returns. The Mummy was a great summer flick that won audiences over (myself included) with it's enthusiasm and charm. So despite my trepidation when it comes to sequels, I was all for the idea of a second film. That is...until I saw The Mummy Returns. It seemed thrown together, and since the principles involved weren't coming back for another go round it felt like they just crammed everything into those two hours. The situation didn't improve when the third installment, The Scorpion King landed in theaters with a bit of thud. But Universal has always been keen on the idea of resurrecting the franchise.
CinemaBlend.com had posted rumors that the Mummy 3 production was struggling not only with getting Brendan Fraser back into the lead, but also with a script that was dead weight and the issue of director Stephen Sommers being replaced by Stealth's Rob Cohen. Our own Erik Davis pulled Fraser aside on the Inkheart set and tried to wrestle a few more details from him. Now, Universal has responded to all the rumors and confirmed that the principles are all in negotiation to return, and the script will be undergoing a re-write. Universal also went on to say that while Sommers would not return as director, they had every confidence in Cohen's ability to get the franchise back up and rolling. Considering what most critics thought of Stealth, it looks like Universal's faith in Cohen could be a little misguided.
I know what you're thinking: "An established and profitable director signing on to do somebody else's sequel? That's a little bit funky." And you'd be right. Aside from Adam Shankman diving in to direct Cheaper By the Dozen 2, it doesn't seem to happen all that much. "Part 3s" are usually reserved for newcomers who've cut their teeth on music videos -- or an FX / production design / cinematography guy who just earned a fair promotion.
So why would Cohen (who has directed such hits as The Fast and the Furious and xXx) be willing to step into this particular gig? To take over for Stephen Sommers, who graduated from the Mummy movies to direct Van Helsing? TMZ.com has not only the scoop, but the logic:
Rob Cohen's last movie was Stealth, the $130 million dungpile that made less than $37 million in domestic box office. That's why.
OK, so we all jumped the gun a little when 
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