Universal Pictures, which manages the Universal Monsters franchise, has directly challenged Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe by reviving a classic franchise character after 128 years!
According to CBR, Skybound Entertainment is set to release the Universal Monsters line of comics (which includes horrors like Frankenstein’s monster, Dracula, the Invisible Man, the Werewolf, and more). The news further stated that the line of comics will return with a second print of the highly acclaimed comic book Universal Monsters: The Invisible Man #1.
This could potentially mean that Universal Pictures is thinking of reviving the infamous franchise that was ruined by Tom Cruise’s 2017 flick, The Mummy.
What Went Wrong With Tom Cruise’s The Mummy?
To start off, the 2017 movie wasn’t exactly one of the worst movies that Hollywood had ever seen. However, The Mummy was indeed riddled with several things that went horribly wrong.
Starting things off with the mish-mash of genres, The Mummy tried to honor its predecessors by keeping that horror-intense vibe alive with scenes of Ahmanet, but found a problem with their lead actor, Tom Cruise. Known for his action movies and over-the-top stunt sequences, the movie couldn’t decide between honoring the horror legacy of Brendan Fraser’s The Mummy
The second thing that went terribly wrong is that the film got too ambitious for its own good. As stated earlier, Universal Pictures wanted to create its own Dark Cinematic Universe, which would be filled with monsters and interconnectivity and was presumed to rival that of the MCU (and now the DCU).
The Mummy was chosen as the tentpole of the cinematic universe, while also confirming Johnny Depp (The Invisible Man), Javier Bardem (Frankenstein’s Monster), and Russell Crowe (Dr. Henry Jekyll) as the cast for future endeavours.
However, The Mummy spent too much time building this grandiose cinematic universe rather than getting to the core story at hand. Fans weren’t able to fully grasp the grand scale of things, nor appreciate the storyline, for it was quite poorly managed.
| Key Facts About The Mummy (2017) | |
| Directed By: | Alex Kurtzman |
| Cast: | Tom Cruise, Annabelle Wallis, Russell Crowe |
| Year of Release: | 2017 |
| IMDb Rating: | 5.4/10 |
| Rotten Tomatoes Score: | 15% |
| Worldwide Box Office: | $409 million |
| Production House: | Universal Pictures |
Naturally, Universal Pictures’ Dark Cinematic Universe had a flawed launch. However, the second run of Universal Monsters: The Invisible Man #1 could hint that the cinematic universe might be given a second chance.
Can Universal Pictures Make the Dark Cinematic Universe Work?
With the second run of the comic book, Universal Pictures may be trying to get people interested in their Dark Cinematic Universe once again. The upcoming release of Guillermo Del Toro’s Frankenstein (although not produced by Universal Pictures) might also help in improving the popularity of these characters.
There is an upcoming The Mummy reboot which is currently in development, and there has been a lot of chatter about it as well. Having learned from their mistakes, the studio could very well attempt to resurrect their cinematic universe while also rectifying their previous mistakes.
Of course, it remains speculation at this point; however, we do believe in second chances (most of the time), and the Dark Cinematic Universe is indeed something that can eventually rival the likes of the MCU and the DCU with enough time.
Would you want to see Universal Pictures’ Dark Cinematic Universe? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
The Mummy is available to stream on YouTube TV (USA).
