Alex Kurtzman and Chris Morgan have stepped away from Universal Pictures’ ‘The Dark Universe’.
Kurtzman helmed and co-wrote the Tom Cruise led reboot of ‘The Mummy’, which was set to be the start of a shared cinematic world populated by the studio’s iconic horror characters from the 1920s to the 1940s.
Now Kurtzman and Morgan – who co-produced the picture – has stepped away from the franchise, The Hollywood Reporter claim.
Following The Mummy’s disappointing return at the box office, Universal pulled a planned 2017 remake of ‘The Bride of Frankenstein’, starring Angelina Jolie.
Johnny Depp was set to play ‘The Invisible Man’ in a separate project.
It’s reported Kurtzman is now focusing on TV and is producing ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ and Morgan has returned to the ‘Fast and Furious’ franchise and is writing a spin-off for Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham.
Universal Pictures President of Production Peter Cramer said they are now not "rushing to meet a release date" of any planned films and will still move forward with production.
He said: "We’ve learned many lessons throughout the creative process on Dark Universe so far, and we are viewing these titles as filmmaker-driven vehicles, each with their own distinct visions.
"We are not rushing to meet a release date and will move forward with these films when we feel they are the best versions of themselves."
Originally the ‘Dark Universe’ was meant to be kick-started by the Luke Evans movie ‘Dracula: Untold’ but once again due to poor reviews the universe had to begin again.
Alex Kurtzman and Chris Morgan depart Universal’s Dark Universe
