Horror Movie Review: Lee Cronin’s The Mummy (2026)

Following the success of Evil Dead Rise, the idea of Lee Cronin taking on The Mummy franchise was certainly an exciting one. The writer and director had already proven that he was willing to push boundaries, and The Mummy was certainly due a fresh facelift following the dumb attempt to reboot things in a more action orientated way in 2017.

Yet, I don’t think anyone expected Cronin to take the franchise in such a different direction that it’s pretty much unrecognisable. For the record, I liked the film and thought it did enough right to be worthwhile, but there is no denying that is a flawed film. Least of all the fact that it borrows a lot from the man’s previous film, Evil Dead Rise.

Lee Cronin’s The Mummy (writer and director), stars Jack Reynor, Laia Costa, May Calamawy, Natalie Grace, and Verónica Falcón.

The Cannon family have suffered an immense tragedy. While in Cairo, for work, the young daughter of the family, Katie, was abducted. This devastated parents Charlie and Larissa, but with a son, Sebastián and another child on the way, they have little choice but to move forward when the Egyptian authorities reach a dead end. Katie vanished in a sandstorm and is presumed dead.

Until eight years later when she is found in unusual circumstances.

What do I mean? Katie is found inside a sarcophagus, wrapped in parchment inscribed with an ancient language. Which would be weird enough, except she is still alive, albeit in a catatonic state.

It’s a miracle, and when the family are told, they are overjoyed but immensely disturbed when they see her for the first time. It’s the kind of situation that calls for professional care, both from a physical and psychological standpoint, and there’s no doubt that Katie will never be the same again, regardless. Or instead, the family just bring her home, back to Albuquerque, believing that they are all she needs for her to get better.

If you’re noticing an incredulous tone in my writing there, it’s on purpose as this is just one of a few times, that Cronin’s writing pushes the limits of believability. Somehow, in a film about the supernatural, this ends up being one of the most preposterous aspects of the entire film.

So, Katie is bought home to live with her parents, her (now) teenage brother, her grandmother, and her new sister, Maud. Even though she can’t speak, is downright feral, and mutilates herself. As things spiral and the family becomes fractured due to Katie’s erratic behaviour, it becomes even more apparent that they need to find out what happened to her to understand how they can help her.

Unfortunately, the truth is far worse than they could have imagined. Katie is possessed by an ancient demon called a Nasmaranian, and its goal is to destroy families. The scripture that Katie was mummified in was keeping it at bay, but no more, and with the Cannon family, it has easy prey.

The full reveal of what happened to Katie and how she got possessed by the demon is where Lee Cronin’s The Mummy becomes an Evil Dead film to some degree. Not only becoming a more violent, gory, and over the top film, but adding black humour and shock elements more in line with what he did with Evil Dead Rise. It’s understandable that this will be off-putting to many, especially in a re-imagining of The Mummy, but it’s also Cronin sticking to what he’s good at, and he’s good at garish horror that extends way beyond normal horror parameters.

It helps that he can make the gore look particularly intense and seems to delight in the squeamish. Whether it be someone getting torn apart by wild dogs, strips of skin being peeled off, or teeth bring pulled out, Cronin makes sure we see it up close.

It’s one of this more recognisable traits, alongside other more notable obsessions, such as his constant use of a split diopter shot. None of this makes this a bad film, as far as I am concerned, but I can also see why others may not enjoy it. Regardless of the fact that his name is plastered before it, this is supposed to be a reimagining of The Mummy, and it strays far away from the source material.

Personally, I didn’t want another Imhotep story, but I’m not sure I wanted this one either. Especially as it’s far too long, far too convoluted, and has one of the most tacked on endings I’ve seen in some time. I did enjoy it, but I can’t pretend that it didn’t frustrate me and test me at times too.