The Mummy Director Calls Tom Cruise Reboot 'The Biggest Failure of My Life'

Alex Kurtzman has panned his 2017 reboot of The Mummy as ‘probably the biggest regret of my life’.

Despite the film grossing over US $410 million, the director told Bingeworthy podcast that there are a ‘million things’ he regrets about making the Tom-Cruise led reboot. 

"I tend to subscribe to the point of view that you learn nothing from your successes, and you learn everything from your failures," he said.

"And that was probably the biggest failure of my life, both personally and professionally.

"There's about a million things I regret about it, but it also gave me so many gifts that are inexpressibly beautiful.

Jorge Sanz/Pacific Press/Alamy

"I didn't become a director until I made that movie, and it wasn’t because it was well-directed — it was because it wasn't."

After 315 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, the film is sitting on just 16 per cent.

The audience score is a little better at 35 per cent, however critical consensus explained how the movie lacked 'the campy fun' of the original movies and failed to deliver many monster-movie thrills'.

The 2017 film was intended to launch Universal’s Dark Universe, but due to the critical failure of The Mummy, the studio scrapped the idea.

However, Kurtzman explained that he’s ‘grateful’ for the opportunity despite the film’s negative reception.

He said: "As brutal as it was, in many ways, and as many cooks in the kitchen as there were, I am very grateful for the opportunity to make those mistakes because it rebuilt me into a tougher person, and it also rebuilt me into a clearer filmmaker.

"That has been a real gift, and I feel those gifts all the time because I'm very clear now when I have a feeling that doesn't feel right — I am not quiet about it anymore. I will literally not proceed when I feel that feeling."

Universal Pictures/Alamy

He added: “Look, if you look at history and you look at people who’ve made amazing things, every single one of them will tell you the same story which is that it came after a failure, so I look back on it now with gratitude. It took me a while to get there, but my life is better for it.”

Following The Mummy, Kurtzman set his sights on a different science fantasy universe.

He’s directed and written multiple Star Trek series, including Star Trek: Discovery, Star Trek: Picard and the upcoming Star Trek: Strange New Worlds since the 2017 reboot.

The Star Trek spin-off series will be released on Paramount+ May 5 and will follow Captain Christopher Pike and the USS Enterprise crew as they embark on a journey through the galaxy a decade before Star Trek: The Original Series.