Tom Cruise in The Mummy (2017), the would-be first installment of the Dark Universe. Image via Universal. By Michael John Petty Published Sep 9, 2026, 11:07 PM EDT Michael John Petty is a Senior Author for Collider who spends his days writing, in fellowship with his local church, and enjoying each new day with his wife and daughters. At Collider, he writes features, reviews, recaps, and conducts interviews. In addition to writing about stories, Michael has told a few of his own. His novella, The Beast of Bear-tooth Mountain , was released in 2023. His Western short story, The Devil's Left Hand , received the Spur Award for "Best Western Short Fiction" from the Western Writers of America in 2025. Michael currently resides in North Idaho with his growing family. Sign in to your Collider account Add Us Add on Google Preferred Source Google News Like Like follow Follow followed Followed Listen Thread Log in Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents: Try something different: Show me the facts Explain it like I’m 5 Give me a lighthearted recap When it comes to Tom Cruise , the box-office readies itself for his impact. Between hit franchises like Mission: Impossible and Top Gun and action smashes like Edge of Tomorrow and Jack Reacher , it's rare to find a Cruise outing that's, well, disappointing. But everyone's success streak dips sometimes, and the star had one major (dare we say, blockbuster ) misfire that has recently found new life on Prime Video . If you guessed The Mummy , we're both frightened and amazed that you're right.
Sofia Boutella as Ahmanet with her hand outstretched in 2017's The Mummy Image via Universal Pictures The 2017 reboot of the Mummy was a conceptual mess from the very beginning. Rather than being a stunning re-imagining of The Mummy franchise – which originated during Universal's monster movie era in the 1930s, and was at its peak back when Brendan Fraser was the lead — the film was meant to be more of a proof of concept for Universal Studios' proposed " Dark Universe " franchise rebooting their old monster properties that, sadly, went nowhere . In fact, there are four different movies titled The Mummy , and of those entries, the one boasting Tom Cruise is somehow the worst. The supernatural action-adventure flick follows U.S. Army Sergeant Nick Morton (Cruise) as he unintentionally brings the ancient Egyptian Princess Ahmanet ( Sofia Boutella ) back from the dead. Having been mummified, the sorceress returns with unspeakable power and an unparalleled vengeance she seeks to visit against the modern world. However, Morton becomes supernaturally tethered to the titular villain, and slowly begins his own monstrous transformation. The Mummy , then, chronicles the battle for Morton's soul as he wanders into a terrifying world that's bigger than he imagined.
Tonally, The Mummy never quite settles on saying anything of note . It tries its hardest to do far too much and ultimately achieves none of it. In just short of two hours, the Alex Kurtzman -directed film struggles to settle on what exactly it actually wants to be. Is it a Tom Cruise action flick? Of course. Is it a horror movie? At times. Is it the kickstart of an expanded universe? Undoubtedly. Is it a comedy? It's difficult to tell — but Prime Video audiences seem to love it. Or, at least they're finally curious enough about it after a decade to give Cruise the time of day, making it the #4 most-streamed movie on the platform.
Watch this critical failur…