Boris Karloff in ‘The Mummy’ (Everett)

A version of this story first appeared in the Oct. 23 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe.

By Rebecca Ford, The Hollywood Reporter



Universal is resurrecting The Mummy as the kickoff to its planned monsters universe. But when it hits theaters (it’s slated for March 24, 2017), there could be one noticeable change from director Alex Kurtzman and writer Jon Spaihts: The Mummy may be female, with a unique backstory.

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In the 1932 original and the 1999 remake, the monster was male, played by Boris Karloff and Arnold Vosloo, respectively. Sources say the gender of the monster in the new film, which is set in the modern day, likely will depend on casting, expected to happen in the next couple of months. There are two story options — one that would feature a female monster, and one that would feature a male.

Universal’s The Mummy is planned as the first film in a series of interconnected monster films as Universal hopes to build a franchise out of its vault of classic movies. Other potential films revolve around the characters of Dracula, Frankenstein, the Invisible Man, the Bride of Frankenstein and vampire hunter Van Helsing.

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