Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz Just Reunited on The Mummy 4 Set, and the First Photos Prove the 25-Year Wait Was Worth It

It is really happening. After a quarter century of hoping, fans of The Mummy finally got the sight they have been dreaming about since 2001. Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz, back on a film set together, in costume, as Rick and Evelyn O’Connell.

New set photos from The Mummy 4 surfaced this week and they sent the fandom into overdrive. Fraser, 57, was spotted filming on September 28 at a former military base in Suffolk, England, looking like he never left the role. The Oscar winner was photographed behind the wheel of a vintage silver-and-red rocket car, racing through what is reported to be a 1957 speed trials sequence. He wore a dark brown leather jacket and a white crash helmet, and even the background extras were dressed in “Rick O’Connell Racing” tracksuits.

Weisz, 56, was photographed shooting a separate scene outside London’s British Museum. She was dressed in full period costume as Evelyn, a yellow polka-dot skirt with a cropped brown jacket, a wide-brimmed hat, gloves, and a vintage leather briefcase. One shot even showed her clutching a classic transistor radio. It is the kind of image that makes a 25-year wait feel suddenly, wonderfully real.

The photos that broke the internet

The images first made the rounds on September 28, when BACKGRID photographers caught Fraser in action. He was not just standing around between takes. He was driving, helmet on, grinning, fully in character. Reports from the set described him as being in great spirits, chatting with fellow cast members while cameras rolled.

Weisz’s photos followed close behind. Filming outside the British Museum, she looked every bit the brilliant Egyptologist fans fell in love with in 1999. Her outfit was pure vintage: a mustard-yellow polka-dot midi skirt, brown cropped coat, leather gloves, and that hat. The setting could not have been more perfect. Evelyn O’Connell, standing outside the British Museum, briefcase in hand. Some casting choices are just destiny.

A reunion 25 years in the making

This is the first time Fraser and Weisz have played Rick and Evelyn on screen together since 2001’s The Mummy Returns. That is a gap long enough for an entire generation to discover the originals, fall in love with them, and grow up waiting for more.

The road to this moment was anything but smooth. Weisz did not return for 2008’s The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, and Maria Bello took over the role of Evelyn. Weisz later dismissed claims that she disliked the script, saying those rumors were simply not true. Then came 2017’s Tom Cruise-led reboot, which was a critical and financial disappointment. For a while, it looked like the O’Connells were done for good.

Then Brendan Fraser happened. His remarkable comeback, crowned with an Oscar for The Whale, put him back at the top of Hollywood’s most wanted list. His dark new take on Scrooge, much like Johnny Depp’s recent reinvention in Ebenezer, shows how a well-timed return can reignite a career. In 2022, Fraser said he was open to another Mummy movie. The official announcement finally arrived in November 2025: The Mummy 4 was real, with Fraser and Weisz both returning. Production kicked off on September 7, 2026.

What we know about The Mummy 4 so far

Plot details are being kept tightly under wraps, which is exactly how it should be. But here is what has been confirmed.

The film is being directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett, the duo known as Radio Silence, who made the 2019 horror hit Ready or Not. David Coggeshall wrote the screenplay, with James Vanderbilt and Sean Daniel producing. The new movie will serve as a direct sequel to the 1999 and 2001 films, and the plan is to ignore the 2008 installment entirely. That decision alone tells you how much the filmmakers respect the originals.

The returning cast reads like a family reunion. John Hannah, Oded Fehr, and Kevin J. O’Connor are all back alongside Fraser and Weisz. New additions include Michael Johnston and Numan Acar. Fraser has teased that the movie will bring the “band” back together and revisit familiar locations from the earlier films.

One more piece of good news for impatient fans: Universal Pictures has moved the release date up. The film was originally scheduled for May 19, 2028, but it will now hit cinemas on October 15, 2027. That is still a wait, but a shorter one than anyone expected. The franchise joins a crowded 2027 blockbuster calendar, which already includes Marvel’s Avengers: Doomsday.

The new photos also dropped a major hint about the timeline. The 1957 speed trials sequence and the postwar London setting suggest the story takes place roughly 25 to 30 years after the first film, which was set in 1926. Rick and Evelyn have aged right alongside the audience that grew up with them.

Fraser’s journey back to the top

Fraser’s path back to this moment is one of Hollywood’s great comeback stories. After years away from leading roles, his performance in The Whale earned him the Academy Award and reminded everyone what a special screen presence he is. At France’s Deauville American Film Festival just before production began, he told Canal+ that he had to be at work on Monday morning. He described the project as being “like seeing an old friend again.”

That is exactly what these photos feel like. An old friend, back where they belong.

Why this sequel matters more than you think

The original The Mummy grossed $418 million worldwide in 1999 and became one of the defining adventure films of its generation. It was funny, romantic, thrilling, and endlessly rewatchable. In an era of endless reboots that nobody asked for, this is the rare legacy sequel that fans actually demanded.

The secret is the chemistry. Fraser and Weisz created one of the great screen couples. Rick was the charming rogue, Evelyn the brilliant bookworm who could read ancient hieroglyphs and hold her own in a fight. Their dynamic is lightning in a bottle, and no recast or reboot has ever come close to capturing it. These set photos are proof that the bottle is being opened again.

So mark your calendars. October 15, 2027. Rick and Evelyn O’Connell are coming back, and if these first photos are anything to go by, the wait will have been worth every single year.

Sources: PEOPLE, ComingSoon.net