'The Mummy' returns to its horror roots in a chilling first teaser from Lee Cronin
Blumhouse is once again digging into horror history. And this time it's unearthing one of cinema's most recognizable monsters in a way fans have never seen before. Director Lee Cronin is officially resurrecting 'The Mummy'. But early signs suggest this is not a glossy, globe-trotting adventure meant to chase nostalgia. Instead, the newly released teaser points toward something far darker, more unsettling, and rooted in classic horror DNA. The brief teaser for Lee Cronin's 'The Mummy' doesn't offer much in the way of story details, but it does make one thing clear: this film wants to disturb.
From its grim visuals to its abrasive soundscape, the footage feels closer in spirit to Tobe Hooper's 'The Texas Chain Saw Massacre' than to the swashbuckling franchise popularized by Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz in the late '90s. Any expectation of witty banter, elaborate action set pieces, or lighthearted scares should likely be buried alongside the sarcophagus. What stands out immediately is the teaser's eerie presentation. Instead of a traditional trailer with dialogue or music, viewers are shown unsettling photographic images that slowly reveal a decaying body.
The sequence evokes the infamous opening of Hooper's 1974 horror landmark, which used still images and jarring audio to create an atmosphere of dread before the story even began. Cronin appears to be drawing from that same playbook, right down to the industrial, almost mechanical sounds that echo throughout the teaser. The key difference here is that the figure at the center of the imagery doesn't remain lifeless for long. That creative choice offers a strong hint at the tone Cronin is aiming for. Known for pushing horror into uncomfortable territory, the filmmaker made waves with 'Evil Dead Rise'. His style favors claustrophobia and psychological unease over spectacle.
For decades, 'The Mummy' has been treated more like an action-adventure property than a true horror series. Universal's revival in the late 1990s transformed the monster into a vehicle for large-scale thrills and humor, a formula that proved commercially successful but left the horror roots mostly untouched. That approach continued into the ill-fated 2017 reboot starring Tom Cruise, which attempted to launch a shared cinematic universe centered on classic monsters. When that plan collapsed, it left the franchise in limbo. Blumhouse and New Line Cinema appear determined not to repeat those mistakes. This new film fully embraces horror.
In a previous Hollywood Reporter interview, Cronin has described his vision, saying, "This will be unlike any 'Mummy' movie you ever laid eyeballs on before. I'm digging deep into the earth to raise something very ancient and very frightening." Also, the Mummy at the center of the story is neither royalty nor an ancient ruler, as per SlashFilm. Instead, she is a young girl named Katie who vanishes under mysterious circumstances and later returns to her family completely changed. Exactly how and why this transformation occurs remains tightly guarded. All will be revealed when Lee Cronin's 'The Mummy' rises in theaters on April 17, 2026.
