Whether you like it or not, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has set a whole benchmark when it comes to cinematic universes. Fans love the characters so much that they laugh when they laugh and cry when they cry. It’s almost like an extended (although, fictional) family! So when Tom Cruise’s The Mummy tried out its hand at creating a similar universe, why didn’t things work out for them the way they did for Marvel?
Universal Studios once set out to create a Marvel-like cinematic universe, Dark Universe, that would feature characters like Dracula, Van Helsing, etc. Tom Cruise’s The Mummy (2017) was only the second project in the Dark Universe, however, who knew it was going to be the last? As far as screenwriter Eric Heisserer is concerned, the writers played a huge role in why the universe succumbed.
Why Did the Dark Universe Fail Despite Having Tom Cruise?
Tom Cruise is unarguably one of the biggest stars in the entertainment industry. He is known around the globe for his on-screen presence. However, even he couldn’t save The Mummy from failing so badly. With The Mummy’s failure, came the downfall of the once-promising Dark Universe. While the universe was working on a Van Helsing reboot, the project never came to fruition, leading to the untimely demise of the Dark Universe.
Screenwriter Eric Heisserer gave an insight into the writer’s room which may or may not have led to the downfall. During an interview with The Playlist, Heisserer stated,
“It was a very strange experience. There was certainly a big brain trust of writers around the table. You had a lot of voices and none of them could agree on much. Much like when I’d visit my relatives for Thanksgiving and everyone’s arguing with each other…You had some people saying, ‘Should our monsters all be villains in these movies or can they all be heroes?’ And someone else would say, ‘We can build the plane when we fly it.’ And it’s me and Jon Spaihts at the table going, ‘That’s a terrible analogy. We don’t want to be on that plane. What are we doing here?'”
Val Helsing’s project was soon shelved after the disappointing reception of the Dark Universe and so were a few other projects, including Invisible Man and a sequel to Dracula Untold.
Tom Cruise’s The Mummy Was the Director’s Biggest Failure
The Mummy faced a ton of negative reviews upon its release as evidenced by the low score of 15% on Rotten Tomatoes. The film made a total of $410 million at the box office. Since an estimated sum of $450 million was needed in order to break even, the film ended up bombing the box office.
Director Alex Kurtzman opened up on Playlist’s Bingeworthy podcast and called the film the biggest failure of his life. However, it sure was a teaching moment for him!
“I tend to subscribe to the point of view that you learn nothing from your successes, and you learn everything from your failures. And that was probably the biggest failure of my life, both personally and professionally. There’s about a million things I regret about it but it also gave me so many gifts that are inexpressibly beautiful.”
According to Kurtzman, he didn’t truly become a director before he made The Mummy. He states that the film’s failures taught him about the dos and don’ts of the art of filmmaking and it wouldn’t have been possible without the 2017 movie. After all, failures are only the stepping stones to success!
You can rent/buy The Mummy from Prime Video.
Source: Playlist
