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Here we are again: another week, another horror flick winding up the regulators. This time it’s Lee Cronin's The Mummy that’s kicked up a right stir – but not for what’s actually in the film. It’s all about the posters.

The Mummy posters, showing a disturbingly real-looking decaying child, have been banned from being displayed outdoors in the UK after thirty people officially complained to the ASA.

The Poster Problem

So, what’s happened? The Advertising Standards Authority got a flood of complaints—about thirty or so—over posters plastered across the London Underground and hanging out on billboards. What sparked the fuss wasn’t the usual blood and guts, but an image of a female child, looking well past her best-before date, half decayed and distinctly unsettling.

Parents and commuters said it was too much for adults and kids alike, and you can see their point: the thing looks pulled straight from a nightmare. The film’s tagline tried to be cheeky—'Some things are meant to stay buried. Lee Cronin’s The Mummy'—but honestly, it just made it worse. The ASA agreed and nixed the posters from public spaces, saying the image was just too much for kids walking by to have to see it on the way to school or wherever.

The authority put out a statement laying it on the line:

We considered the image was likely to distress young children and that it was unsuitable for display where it was likely to be seen by them. We therefore concluded that the ads were unsuitable for outdoor display and therefore breached the code.

Just How Bad Is the Film?

For what it’s worth, The Mummy itself isn’t the most horrific thing you’ll see if you’re a regular in the horror section. If you want real trauma, try Martyrs, Suspiria, or, if you’ve got a strong stomach, The Human Centipede. In comparison, The Mummy is more on the side of freaky-grotesque than outright revolting.

This one plays with the classic monster formula. You’ve got a demonic parasite imprisoned inside a child. The ‘mummy’ remains dormant, as long as her human wrappings—so to speak—are still technically alive. The notorious poster actually comes from a scene in the film, when the mummified child is first discovered. Gruesome, yeah, but all part of the plot.

TV Spots Get Curtailed Too

Not just the posters either. Clearcast, who vet UK TV ads, put restrictions on The Mummy’s trailer after they spotted the bit where a child’s body gets dragged out of a sarcophagus. No showing before 7:30 in the evening—too much for teatime telly.

Warner Bros didn’t agree with the call and argued they were only showing a ‘living mummy’ with a blank face, nothing violent or graphic. Apparently, the trailer isn’t full of horror clichés either—no jump scares, gore, or slasher nonsense. Just unsettling vibes, really.

Director Lee Cronin, instead of apologising, had a bit of fun with it on X (Twitter, for the traditionalists). He posted an admittedly cheeky plug for streaming, saying:

I hate to spoil the party, but she’s already inside your home on @hbomax.

Most fans in the comments backed Cronin, claiming the ASA was being over the top. Some even pointed out their kids had been more bothered by other horror posters in public—one mum mentioned that The Black Phone poster spooked her daughter outside primary school, but no one made a fuss over that. A few did side with the ban, saying the same tough standards should be applied to all movies, not just the one that got the most complaints.

Other Horror Ads Scrutinised

The ASA has been busy, it turns out. They also fielded about twenty complaints about the posters and broadcast ads for They Will Kill You, with concerns the campaign was glorifying violence. This time, the posters got a free pass for being obviously stylised, not realistic, and the TV ad only airs after the 7:30 watershed anyway, so fewer traumatised children to worry about.

• Lee Cronin's The Mummy stars a demonic parasite hidden inside a mummified child: a new spin on the old monster formula.
• The image on the banned poster comes straight out of the film’s big reveal scene.
• The film has had its TV ads restricted too, with nothing allowed before the evening.
• Public complaints focused mainly on kids’ exposure to the image in public spaces.
• Other horror adverts (like They Will Kill You) have been investigated, but not banned, for allegedly glamorising violence.