Lee Cronin’s The Mummy Set to Defy Expectations at the Box Office, New Projections Reveal

Well, here we go again—The Mummy franchise is shuffling back onto the big screen, but this time there's a bit more bite (and a whole lot more horror) to it. Lee Cronin, the guy who scrambled up the Evil Dead series with ‘Evil Dead Rise’ last year, has taken the mummy’s wrappings into his own hands. And, if the latest numbers are to be believed, the box office prognosis is looking decent as we head into its US release this Friday, April 17. Let’s unpack what’s new, what’s weird, and just how freaky this reimagining is aiming to get.

Not Your Pharaoh's Franchise

Cronin’s ‘The Mummy’ isn’t trying to ride the nostalgia wave of Brendan Fraser (the late ‘90s hero who will apparently return for another sequel, but not this one) or erase the taste of the Tom Cruise mess from 2017—you remember, the one everyone tried to forget? No, this take goes full supernatural horror, which frankly feels smarter for a Blumhouse/Atomic Monster production anyway.

The Money Talk: Box Office Projections

So, let's get to the numbers. If you're expecting ‘Project Hail Mary’ or ‘Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ money, slow your roll. But for a smaller-scale horror flick, things are coming together:

• Weekend Opening (Domestic): Right now, BoxOffice Pro says Cronin’s ‘The Mummy’ is likely pulling in $15 million to $20 million opening weekend. That’s up from their earlier prediction last month, which started as low as $10 million.
• Total Domestic Run: The brains at BoxOfficeTheory are in the same ballpark, seeing a launch between $14 million and $20 million, and projecting a final domestic haul of about $36 million (with a high-end guess of $59 million).

For perspective, ‘Evil Dead Rise’ opened with $24 million and ultimately took in $147 million globally. But, let’s be real, that franchise has more current name recognition than The Mummy and its many... let’s say “uneven” sequels. For production budget, things are still murky, but Cronin’s last ride cost somewhere between $15 million and $19 million, so it’s probably in the same (mummified) ballpark here.

Trailer Buzz & Early Mood

If you’re trying to gauge hype, 19 million people watched the first trailer since it dropped in February—not mind-blowing, but solid. Blumhouse and Atomic Monster are making it clear this isn’t Brendan’s stunt-heavy adventure, hammering the message home with trailer tags like ‘From The Studios That Brought You Weapons.’ (No, it’s not referring to actual weapons. That’s 'Weapons'—the horror movie. Marketing, man...)

And let’s face it, putting “Lee Cronin” in the title probably only registers with diehard horror fans, but hey, maybe it helps. Horror’s been punching above its weight at the box office lately, especially if early fan reactions catch fire. So far, reactions call the movie “graphic,” “unsettling,” and “gruesome.” (That’s a compliment in this genre.) No Rotten Tomatoes score yet, but buzz leans positive.

The Premise: A Very Unsettling Family Reunion

The movie itself sticks to the ‘Mummy’ theme but takes it darker: Jack Reynor and (oddly enough) Larissa Cannon star as Charlie and Larissa Cannon, a married couple who discover their daughter Katie (played by Natalie Grace) has been found—years after vanishing in the desert—mummified inside a sarcophagus. But here’s the kicker: she comes home, but as a barely-recognizable, gray, frail version of herself. That’s when the real nightmare starts for the Cannon family. If you like your sarcophagi with a side of family trauma and creeping dread, this one’s made to order.

“Its first official trailer in February has earned an impressive total of 19 million views to date.”

So, is this version of The Mummy set to dig up gold or get buried under the weight of its franchise baggage? Early signs look cautiously optimistic. We’ll see if audiences are ready to run screaming (in a good way) when it opens this Friday.