When it was released just a few short months ago, few, if any, could have predicted what a seismic impact Curry Barker’s Obsession would have on not just the horror genre but the film industry at large. The low-budget horror film became an outright zeitgeist-capturing sensation, and now the talent involved with the film, both in front of and behind the camera, are getting to realize their larger-scaled dreams in real time.
Lead actress Inde Navarrette has (rightfully) earned boatloads of acclaim for her layered and dynamic performance and has been in talks with filmmakers like Michael Mann as a result. Barker himself has been recruited to write and direct the new Texas Chainsaw Massacre film for a laundry list of illustrious producers, including Glen Powell. And now, news has come out that the film’s leading man, Michael Johnston, is set to star in the new Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz-starring sequel to 1999’s The Mummy.
In the shuffle of everything post-Obsession, I personally am of the opinion that Johnston’s enormous contributions to that film have gotten a bit underplayed. His character of Bear in that film is a prickly one, whose extremely conflicted actions have contributed immensely to the discourse that has surrounded the film since release, but I’m afraid that’s kind of eclipsed the remarkable job that Johnston does as the character. For as spellbinding as Navarrette’s performance is, Johnston is the spine of the film; without a pinch-hitter in that role, the entire film would fall flat. It has long been said that acting is reacting, and Johnston is so often the reaction that sells the film’s more eccentric swings with true aplomb.
I say all of this to say that I am delighted to see him getting this kind of attention from a high-profile project like The Mummy sequel. The long-gestating proper follow-up to the seminal 1999 classic is bringing stars Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz back together on the big screen for the first time since 2001’s immediate follow-up, The Mummy Returns. While there was a third film, 2008’s The Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, Weisz’s role was infamously recast, and the film as a whole received a much more divisive response.
For years, fans have clamored for Fraser and Weisz to make a proper return, so it was music to audiences’ ears when it was announced a few months back that not only was a new Mummy sequel happening with the two leads returning, but also Radio Silence would be taking over as directors of the new film. The creative duo behind films like Ready or Not and Scream VI, the hiring of Radio Silence seemed like a promise to balance the classic with the new in this film, and bringing Michael Johnston aboard seems to further cement this mantra.
So now, audiences can look forward to a new Mummy sequel starring the classic cast but with talent from some of the most successful and innovative horror films of the past few years, an ideal middle ground if ever there was one.
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