It has been nearly 30 years since the world was first introduced to Brendan Fraser’s Rick O’Connell in the iconic ‘90s movie, The Mummy. Though the franchise it spawned has been all wrapped up and seemingly buried in a vault somewhere at Universal Studios for the better part of two decades, it’s finally returning to the big screen.
Though the hotly anticipated continuation of the fun, throwback adventure film is still a ways off, we already know quite a lot about The Mummy 4 (or whatever it ends up being called). From the release date to the returning cast to the highly sought-after creative team pulling strings behind the scenes to what’s in store regarding special effects and violence, we have a lot to unwrap here…
What Is The Mummy 4 Release Date?
As great as it would be to have The Mummy 4 come out on the 2026 movie schedule, that’s not happening. However, Variety has reported that Universal Pictures’ horror-adventure film will hit the big screen on May 19, 2028.
Though nothing is sharing the weekend with the new Mummy movie, 2028 is already shaping up to be a killer year in theaters. We’ll have Sam Mendes’ four Beatles films and the conclusion of the Fast & Furious franchise with Fast Forever, and we’re still two years out!
The Mummy 4 Cast
The first big news about The Mummy 4 came out in November 2025, when The Hollywood Reporter published a story about Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz teaming up to play Rick O’Connell and Evelyn (Carnahan) O’Connell, respectively. Having the pair at the heart of The Mummy and The Mummy Returns (Weisz didn’t reprise the role in 2008’s The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor) seems like a no-brainer, even if we’re still waiting for a final confirmation. Deadline would later confirm these reports in February 2026 by announcing the two franchise stars would be returning. Variety reported the following month that John Hannah would be back as Jonathan Carnahan.
There’s no word on other members of The Mummy 4 cast and whether or not longtime franchise favorites will be showing up alongside some new talent. That said, it’s hard to imagine the creative team not having plans for Oded Fehr, who played Ardeth Bay in the first two movies. When asked by CinemaBlend’s Mick Joest in January 2026, the actor admitted that while he hadn’t been contacted about returning, he would love to do another movie.
It also isn’t known if Arnold Vosloo’s Imhotep, the titular mummy from the first two films, will be coming back for another adventure. Sure, he’s died multiple times, but it wouldn’t be strange to see him return. Well, unless some cats are running around.
What Is The Mummy 4 About?
While Universal Pictures has yet to comment on the story, setting, and scope of the upcoming action movie, a source told The Hollywood Reporter in the same article mentioned above that The Mummy 4 will reportedly be a sequel, as opposed to a reboot, that will disregard the events of Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.
The first two movies in the Mummy franchise took place in Egypt, both during ancient times and the 1920s and 1930s, so it wouldn’t be outside the realm of possibility for this new feature film to take place around the mid-20th century. Though the 2008 movie is reportedly being left off the timeline, it did take place in the 1940s, which seems like a great place to pick back up with the story of Rick, Evelyn, and their family of archaeologists and adventurers.
When speaking with Empire Magazine in early 2026, directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, known collectively as Radio Silence, didn’t share any specifics about the script being worked on by David Coggeshall, but they did provide a nice tease for what’s to come:
Having stepped into Scream, our radar for jumping into another franchise is that it has to feel special. And [David Coggeshall’s] script really does that. It is very beautiful and sweeping and scary and fun.
This didn’t shed light on any story elements, but it appears as if the creative team is aiming to capture the various elements that made the first two Mummy movies so much fun.
The Mummy 4’s Directors Want To Focus On Practical Effects Over CGI
Going back and watching the first two Mummy movies is a blast from the past, but it doesn’t take long to notice that the CGI has aged very poorly. Though the technology has advanced tremendously since then, it looks like Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett want to have a more practical approach to the franchise’s return. When asked by Bloody Disgusting if he and Bettinelli-Olin plan on taking a more practical route, Gillett had this to say:
I think we can fully say that’s the aim. To steer into Raiders [of the Lost Ark] territory. Obviously, there are going to be big grand set pieces that are going to require some of that, but I think our goal is to put ourselves and the crew and the cast in as real a situation as we can.
Okay, the idea of a horror-centric action movie using practical effects to bring Ancient Egypt to life and then unleashing a mummy on the world millennia later has me even more excited for this movie.
Production Is Slated To Kick Off In August 2026
With The Mummy 4 cast starting to shape up, some are probably wondering about now when production will get started on this long-overdue sequel. Well, Radio Silence is planning for an August 2026 start. When speaking with Collider ahead of the release of Ready or Not 2: Here I Come, Tyler Gillett revealed that prep work on the project is supposed to start up sometime in May, with cameras “hopefully” rolling in August.
With production aiming to start nearly two years before the film’s release, this sounds like it’s going to be quite a daunting and ambitious shoot, which will undoubtedly be followed by extensive post-production work. That said, this is getting realer by the day…
Radio Silence Is Aiming For A PG-13 Rating
Over the past decade, Radio Silence has made a name for itself in the realm of horror, with its Scream and Ready or Not movies being blood-soaked and full of R-rated violence. So, will they plan to make The Mummy universe as extreme? Well, when speaking with Inverse in March 2026, they confirmed they’re aiming for a PG-13 rating with this funny back-and-forth:
Bettinelli-Olpin: [Laughing] It’ll be PG-13. Gillett: But I think we’re going to try to push that. We’re going to find the edge and I’m sure we’ll step over the line and then we’ll be told to walk it back. But I mean, we will take risks. We can tell you that we are going to take some risks with that project in some really fun ways.
With the line between PG-13 and R being a complicated one, it will be interesting to see just how much these two can get away with and still keep a rating that’ll allow moviegoers younger than 17 into the theater. Hopefully, they find a way to keep using buckets upon buckets of blood again
How To Watch The Other Mummy Movies
We still have a little over two years before The Mummy 4 goes from the tomb to the big screen, and that gives you plenty of time to go back and revisit the franchise up to this point. If you’ve never watched the daring adventure films, or if you just need a refresher, it’s never been easier to go back and see how it all started. While it sounds like Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is going to be retconned out of the timeline, we’re including the various ways to check it out for posterity.
- Stream The Mummy on HBO Max.
- Rent/Buy The Mummy on Amazon.
- Stream The Mummy Returns on HBO Max.
- Rent/Buy The Mummy Returns on Amazon.
- Stream The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor on HBO Max.
- Rent/Buy The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor on Amazon.
- Buy The Mummy Ultimate on Blu-ray on Amazon.
With the cast filling out, production gearing to kick off later this summer, and so much other forward momentum, there’s a lot to look forward to with The Mummy. Now we just need to find out what it’s going to be about…
