Why Rachel Weisz Wasn't In The Third Mummy Movie
Stephen Sommers' 1999 film "The Mummy" is a lighthearted adventure romp that has more in common with Universal's Abbott & Costello monster movies than the 1932 Karl Freund film that shares its title. The film is a hoot-and-a-half, full of broad characters, funny dialogue, a few moments of fun/icky monster horror, and no small amount of bisexual panic; it's a matter of record that "The Mummy" instigated 90% of all Millennials' bisexual awakenings. My goodness, the cast is attractive. "The Mummy" was also a massive hit, grossing over $416 million worldwide on a then rather high $80 million budget. The film played at slumber parties for a year. It was inevitable that a sequel be made.
"The Mummy Returns" was released in 2001, and it was ... not as good. The main selling point of "The Mummy Returns" was not the return of cast members Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz, or John Hannah, but the cinematic debut of Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as the vicious ancient warlord known as the Scorpion King. Johnson's character would eventually star in his own series of spin-off films. "The Mummy Returns" made even more money than the 1999 original, but it wasn't held in the same high regard. It may have something to do with the noticeably bad CGI effects.
Fast-forward to 2008, and "The Mummy" limped back to life with the largely forgettable "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor." The new film featured Jet Li (as the title Mummy) and Michelle Yeoh. Fraser returned as well, but Weisz was replaced by Maria Bello in the role of Evy. Rick and Evy were to go on an adventure with their 21-year-old son.
According to a rumor Digital Spy ran in 2008, Weisz, then 38, didn't want to play the mother of a 21-year-old.
Cohen's testimony
Rachel Weisz's concerns about playing the mother of a 21-year-old were communicated to Digital Spy by "Dragon Emperor" director Rob Cohen. He claimed that "I got a very angry phone call from her agent, saying she'll never play the mother of a 21-year-old. I said, 'Okay, good, fine, bye.'" Maria Bello was 41 but had no issues with the role. Bello avails herself well as she's an amazingly capable actor. The only issue is that, well, she's not Weisz.
Back in 2007, there were other reasons Weisz stated for not wanting to appear in "Dragon Emperor." Notably, she didn't like the script. According to a report in CinemaBlend from 2007, back when the film was still in production, Weisz confessed to a reporter that the screenplay was quite bad. The unnamed CinemaBlend reporter had said that Weisz told them "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's also notable that Weisz gave birth to her first son in 2006, and the thought of leaving a one-year-old at home to shoot a movie she wasn't too excited about wasn't terribly appealing.
In 2008, Weisz appeared in Rian Johnson's "The Brothers Bloom" and a romantic comedy called "Definitely, Maybe." Those, it seems, were more appealing projects than yet another "Mummy" sequel.
/Film reported in 2007 that Weisz might appear in "Sin City: A Dame to Kill For" instead, although that proved to be false, as did rumors she was to appear in mysterious movies called "The Colossus," and "Dirt Music" (released sans Weisz in 2019).
Weisz's most recent feature films were "Black Widow," a film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and Yorgos Lanthimos' "The Favourite." She also stars in two roles — identical twins — in the recent Prime Video series adaptation of "Dead Ringers."