According to Some The Mummy’s Box Office Failure Is Tom Cruise’s Fault
Jonathan Barkan
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Whether or not you enjoyed The Mummy, Universal’s first step toward its Dark Universe, no one can deny that the film didn’t premiere the way many had hoped or expected. Drawing in a measly $32 million domestically in its opening weekend, the $190 million film – which supposedly spent another $100 million on marketing – is going to have trouble breaking even, much less attaining any profitability, at least during its theater run (home video and digital rental sales will certainly give it a boost).
Because of the flop, everyone is speculating as to what may have been the driving cause for such a lackluster performance, one that jeopardizes the future of the Dark Universe series before it even really has a chance to take off. While some say they aren’t sure as to why the film is failing to meet expectations, others have found their scapegoat: Tom Cruise.
According to Variety, one of the contractual obligations that Universal had with Cruise was that he was given “…control of most aspects of the project, from script approval to post-production decisions.” On top of that, he had a hand in figuring out and deciding the marketing and release strategy.
Now, when asked if this might be the case, Universal denied it up and down, stating, “Tom approaches every project with a level of commitment and dedication that is unmatched by most working in our business today. He has been a true partner and creative collaborator, and his goal with any project he works on is to provide audiences with a truly cinematic moviegoing experience.”
It’s that last line that should raise some eyebrows, especially the part where it says “creative collaborator.” Before The Mummy, director Alex Kurtzman’s only other directorial effort was 2012’s People Like Us, which starred Chris Pine and had a budget of $16 million. Going from a family drama to a wild action/adventure set in a horror universe is not going to be an easy adjustment, no matter how much production experience he has had on titles such as “Sleepy Hollow,” Transformers, and Star Trek. Cruise, on the other hand, has been a part of several high-budget films and has more experience working on those kinds of productions. Sources told Variety, “…it felt more like Cruise was the real director, often dictating the major action sequences and micro-managing the production.”
At the end of the day Universal is going to have to take a long, hard look at everything that went into The Mummy, both good and bad. If they are passionate about the Dark Universe, they may have to make some tough decisions on the scope of the project and the names attached. Hell, if indie horror films can pull in tens of millions of dollars on a shoestring budget while looking fantastic, maybe that’s what needs to be done here. Lord knows I’d love to see some epic budget horror films; however, I only want them if they’re going to be done right. Otherwise, it’s not worth it.
Categorized:News
