Rachel Weisz is not only one of the most stunning beauties that Hollywood has ever had but is also regarded as one of the biggest and most renowned celebrities in the industry. Although her debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with her role of Melina Vostakoff aka the adoptive mother to Natasha Romanoff in Black Widow only increased her popularity, the film that initially gave her career a boost was, in fact, one from the franchise that she left midway: The Mummy Franchise.
While she starred eloquently in the first film and the sequel alongside Brendan Fraser and was widely loved for her role, Weisz reportedly refused to return for The Mummy 3 as the Jet Li-produced movie did her character dirty.
The Reported Reasons Why Rachel Weisz Allegedly Refused To Return To The Mummy 3
Rachel Weisz did an incredible job portraying Evie, the equally capable wife of Brendan Fraser‘s adventurous character Rick O’Connell in the first two of The Mummy films. However, fans’ dreams were shattered when she didn’t return for the third part, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.
As reported by CinemaBlend, the Constantine star was hesitant when asked to take part in the third part due to several severe problems with the movie script. This included the fact that the film would be set thirteen years later than The Mummy Returns, in 1946, because director Rob Cohen wanted to age Fraser and Weisz’s son up, thus making the pair appear as parents of a 21-year-old Alex.
This, however, didn’t sit well with Rachel Weisz. They further reported:
“The same source that broke that original info to us contacted me tonight to update us on why Weisz left. Our source says, ‘The script is still in the same shape that it was the last time I told you about, meaning that it’s still crap and Weisz finally took the high road out of there.’ It sounds like even if they do manage to get other key cast members to participate, it won’t matter. It will take a miracle to make The Mummy 3 good.”
Backing up this source was Cohen’s claim that Weisz was angry because her character was “too old.” According to an interview with Heat (via Digital Spy), the filmmaker said:
“I got a very angry phone call from her agent, saying she’ll never play the mother of a 21-year-old. I said, ‘OK, good, fine, bye.’”
Turns out the Dead Ringers actress felt the Jet Li-produced movie did a disservice to her beloved character, doing her dirty and making her not want to reprise her role.
Rachel Weisz Has A Different Account For Not Returning For The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008)
This story took a further confusing turn as Rachel Weisz’s representative claimed that the Enemy at the Gates star would have to spend five months in China for the shoot, away from her then-2-year-old son, which she was not willing to do, as per Digital Spy.
Another reason mentioned by Weisz herself during an interview with the U.K.-based ES Magazine’s Nov. 16 issue back in 2008 (via ScreenRant) was that she had never even read the script. Not only this, but the true reason behind her putting off the project, according to her, was the production scheduling conflict.
Had she agreed to do it, she would’ve had to begin shooting immediately right after the production of her other film The Brothers Bloom was wrapped, meaning she would have no time to take a break and spend some quality time with her family.
Regardless, unsurprisingly enough, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor wasn’t as big of a hit as the previous ones considering how it just wasn’t the same without Rachel Weisz in it.
Source: CinemaBlend | Digital Spy | ScreenRant
