New Irish ‘terrifying’ take on classic movie franchise lands rare 18 rating

Early reactions say the film is 'freaky', 'gruesome', 'scary', 'scream-worthy', 'squirm-inducing' and 'unrelenting'.

Starring Irish actor Jack Reynor (Midsommar, What Richard Did), the movie is out in cinemas next week and is set to take the series back to its horror roots. This is after the more adventure-focused reimaginings starring Brendan Fraser and Tom Cruise.

The plot synopsis for the film reads: "The young daughter of a journalist disappears into the desert without a trace - eight years later, the broken family is shocked when she is returned to them, as what should be a joyful reunion turns into a living nightmare."

Co-starring Laia Costa (Piercing), May Calamawy (Mercenary) and Veronica Falcón (Ozark), the new 2026 version of The Mummy is written and directed by Cronin.

The movie was shot in Ireland and Spain. Warner Bros has described it as "an audacious and twisted retelling".

The rating that the horror has received from the Irish Film Classification Office (IFCO) seems to confirm that "twisted" claim.

An 18 rating is the highest, with only a small number of movies being allocated it each year.

Under the law, cinemas are not allowed to let anyone under 18 years of age enter a screening of an 18-rated film.

The new version of The Mummy earned the classification from IFCO because of the following:

"Sustained strong supernatural violent horror and threat. Disturbing scenes and graphic bloody injury detail. Depictions of child abuse."

Lee Cronin's The Mummy has already been seen by some reviewers, who shared early social reactions online.

You can read a handful of these below:

Speaking to IGN last February, Cronin said of his Mummy: "[This film is] almost one part Poltergeist and one part Seven, but put through my lens and the way that I like to entertain people.

"When I talk about Poltergeist, what I mean is the domestic circumstances and the warmth of the family. And when I talk about Seven, what I mean is the dark, investigative angle and the secrets that exist behind it.

"One of the things that I'm really proud of with this movie... is that we have a really authentic Egyptian cast and lots of Arabic language...

"We've got May Elghety and May Calamawy in the movie, and they play really pivotal roles and have some incredible scenes together... [It took] a lot of learning to direct in a language you don't speak, and then getting into post-production in that language and really understanding – it's an education!

“That was a really challenging but exciting thing to take on. But actually, from Ireland through Mexico and all the way back around to Egypt, it's a big cultural melting pot, the movie, but the Egyptian side and that authenticity really mattered to me.”

Lee Cronin's The Mummy will be released in Ireland on Friday, 17 April 2026.