THE MUMMY 4 Directors Seemingly Erase TOMB OF THE DRAGON EMPEROR From Canon
The sands are shifting again for The Mummy franchise, and this latest update is going to make a lot of longtime fans very happy.
With The Mummy 4 officially in development at Universal Pictures, directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett have finally addressed the question that’s been hovering over this sequel since it was announced: Is The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor still canon?
Back in 1999, Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz launched an adventure classic with The Mummy, directed by Stephen Sommers. The film introduced us to Rick O’Connell and Evelyn Carnahan, and it quickly became a fan favorite thanks to its mix of horror, action, and pulpy fun.
That success led to The Mummy Returns in 2001, bringing Fraser and Weisz back for another round of ancient chaos. The franchise also expanded with the 2002 prequel spinoff The Scorpion King.
Then came 2008’s The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. Fraser returned, but Weisz did not. Maria Bello stepped in as Evelyn, and the story shifted from Egypt to China. Fans didn’t exactly embrace the change.
The film currently holds a rough 13% Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes based on 174 reviews. It also ended up being the lowest-grossing entry in the main trilogy, though it did outgross The Scorpion King.
Fast forward to now. Universal has confirmed that The Mummy 4 is happening, with Fraser and Weisz both reprising their roles. Plot details are still locked away in a dusty tomb, but this new chapter wants to reconnect with what fans loved most about the originals.
Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett were asked directly whether Tomb of the Dragon Emperor would remain canon, considering its rocky reputation among fans.
Bettinelli-Olpin responded, “Well, Rachel [Weisz] is in this one,”
Gillett followed up with, “That should answer the question for you.”
If Weisz is back as Evelyn, that strongly suggests the events of Tomb of the Dragon Emperor aren’t part of the timeline moving forward. Just a clean return to the Rick and Evelyn dynamic that made the franchise work in the first place.
This also opens up a bigger mystery. What happens to Alex O’Connell? In The Mummy Returns, the character was played by Freddie Boath as a kid. In Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, an older version was portrayed by Luke Ford.
If the third film is being ignored, then canonically we haven’t seen Alex since he was a child. Does that mean he’ll reappear as an adult in The Mummy 4? Will the story skip over him entirely? That’s one of many questions hanging over the project.
What we do know is that fans are getting Fraser and Weisz back together, which is a huge win. Radio Silence clearly understands what made the original films click, and their playful response suggests they’re leaning into that legacy instead of trying to fix something that didn’t land.
The Mummy 4 is set to hit theaters on May 19, 2028. It’s still a long wait, but if this new installment delivers the same swashbuckling energy as the 1999 classic, it could be a seriously fun return to one of the coolest adventure franchises of the late ’90s and early 2000s.