Cinematic universes don’t get off to a rougher start than “The Mummy.” The first film in Universal‘s Dark Universe was critically panned and earned just $390 million worldwide. Those are good numbers, but not great, and certainly, there doesn’t seem to be any clamoring for more monster movies that are connected. Nonetheless, Universal are pressing forward, and their roster of A-list anchors which include Javier Bardem (Frankenstein), Russell Crowe (Dr. Jekyll) and Johnny Depp (The Invisible Man) is impressive. However, the studio has learned some lessons.
According to THR, Universal will be putting more time toward script development on Dark Universe movies, which certainly makes a lot of sense given the muddle of “The Mummy.” But in fairness to the studio, their next entry in the series doesn’t arrive until 2019 with “The Bride Of Frankenstein,” so they do have time on their side.
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Even more intriguing, Channing Tatum is being eyed for “Van Helsing,” with the script on that movie getting a final polish. The actor’s last real franchise effort were those “G.I. Joe” flicks, and he has been itching for some kind of spectacle, long attached to the still-not-made “Gambit” over at Fox. He’s dropping into this fall’s “Kingsman: The Golden Circle,” but “Van Helsing” would be a chance to lead his own tentpole.
We’ll see if this coalesces into something real, and usually, studios have more than one name they’re looking at. But it certainly suggests Universal is hardly giving up on their Dark Universe.