The Mummy horror movie banned from public display due to 'distressing' image

Posters for The Mummy have been banned from public display in the UK, after the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) grew particularly concerned about areas where children are 'likely to see' them.

The ban comes just four months after the chilling movie was released in cinemas on April 17, which has received mixed reviews from critics and a 45 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes.

But the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) in the UK has since received numerous complaints about the poster which was used to promote the horror, and has now ruled it should be completely 'banned' from public display.

The watchdog said in a statement: "In any case, 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."

The poster, which they claim features a 'realistic depiction of a dead child', prompted 30 complaints, after it was placed on an outdoor billboard near the London Underground.

The poster is now banned from public display in the UK. (Warner Bros)

Warner Bros also issued a statement following the ban, in which they claimed the ads were not intended to create fear or distress, and had been made with 'due responsibility to consumers and society'.

The poster depicted a close-up of a child-like looking female figure with a mummified appearance, who notably had one eye swollen shut, with the tagline: "Some things are meant to stay buried."

But Warner Bros argued that the girl in the poster was actually a 'living mummy' who had been returned to her parents as a teenager, many years after being kidnapped as a child.

The ASA noted that while the ads were not placed within 100 metres of any schools, one billboard was visible from a children’s nursery.

The director has responded to the ban. (Warner Bros.)

What is The Mummy about?

Directed by Lee Cronin, the official synopsis reads: "The young daughter of a journalist disappears into the desert without a trace.

"Eight years later, the broken family is shocked when she's returned to them. However, what should be a joyful reunion soon turns into a living nightmare as she starts to transform into something truly horrifying."

What has the director said about the poster ban?

Speaking with the Hollywood Reporter, Cronin addressed the UK-wide ban of the poster.

He said: "I’ll always just stand back and go, 'There’s a lot of arresting things and images we’re faced with every day in the world, let alone the poster from a horror movie'."