You remember the 2017 reboot of The Mummy. Not exactly for the reasons Universal Pictures hoped, right? It was supposed to be the glorious dawn of the "Dark Universe," a sprawling cinematic world where Dracula, the Wolfman, and Frankenstein’s monster would rub shoulders. Instead, it became a bit of a cautionary tale about overstuffed franchise building. But if you look past the weight of the "universe" talk, there is a performance at the center that often gets overshadowed by Tom Cruise’s relentless running.
Annabelle Wallis stepped into the role of Jenny Halsey, and honestly, she had a mountain to climb.
Playing opposite Tom Cruise isn't just a job; it’s an athletic event. Most people see her as the "damsel" in this flick. That’s a mistake. Wallis actually fought for a version of Halsey that was far more than just a love interest or someone to be rescued from falling debris. She played an archaeologist with ties to a secret society called Prodigium, bringing a sense of intellectual weight to a movie that was, let's be real, mostly about things blowing up.
The Zero-G Stunt That Almost Ended in Disaster
If there’s one thing everyone remembers about Annabelle Wallis in The Mummy, it’s that plane crash. Most movies would have used a soundstage and some fancy wire work. Not this one. Because it’s a Tom Cruise movie, they went to France and hopped on a "Vomit Comet"—a parabolic aircraft that creates true weightlessness.
Wallis was right there with him. No green screen. No stunt double for the close-ups.
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They did 64 parabolas. Imagine your stomach doing backflips for two days straight while you're trying to remember your lines and hit your marks. Wallis later admitted she almost lost her lunch on Cruise multiple times. There was one terrifying moment where her parachute pack got snagged on a rail inside the plane. As the aircraft leveled out and gravity returned—violently—she was nearly choked by her own gear. Cruise, acting as a real-life hero, had to grab her and pull her down before the G-forces took over.
That's the kind of commitment Wallis brought. She wasn't just showing up for a paycheck; she was literally risking her neck in 20,000-foot freefalls.
Breaking Down the Jenny Halsey Character
Jenny Halsey wasn't your typical sidekick. Working for Dr. Henry Jekyll (played by Russell Crowe), she was the emotional and moral compass of the story. While Nick Morton (Cruise) was busy being a "cocky semi-scoundrel," Jenny was the one actually worried about the world ending.
- Profession: Archaeologist and Prodigium agent.
- The Vibe: Willful, passionate, and arguably the smartest person in any room she’s in.
- The Conflict: Balancing her duty to Prodigium with her genuine (and complicated) feelings for Nick.
Wallis has talked about how she wanted Jenny to be "many shades of gray." She didn't want a perfect hero. She wanted a complex human being who was an equal to the men on screen. In a script that was notoriously rewritten dozens of times, she managed to keep Jenny’s internal logic somewhat intact, which is no small feat.
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Why the Movie Failed (And Why It Wasn't Wallis's Fault)
Let’s be blunt: The Mummy 2017 got hammered by critics. It holds a measly 15% on Rotten Tomatoes. Director Alex Kurtzman has since called it the "biggest failure" of his life. But when you look at the reviews, the blame rarely lands on Annabelle Wallis.
The film suffered from "Franchise Fatigue" before it even started. It tried to do too much. It wanted to be a horror movie, a Mission: Impossible-style action flick, and a world-building pilot all at once. Usually, when a movie tries to be everything, it ends up being nothing.
Brendan Fraser, the king of the '99 Mummy, famously said the reboot lacked "fun." He’s right. The 2017 version was dark and gritty, which didn't always mesh with the campy roots of the franchise. Yet, Wallis’s chemistry with Cruise was one of the few things people actually liked. Her performance in Malignant (2021) later proved she’s a powerhouse in the horror-thriller genre, but we saw the seeds of that talent right here, amidst the Egyptian sandstorms in London.
What Happened After the Sand Settled?
After the Dark Universe crumbled, Wallis didn't slow down. She’s become a bit of a genre queen. If you haven't seen her in Peaky Blinders as Grace Burgess, you’re missing out on her best work. She also jumped into the Star Trek universe and the weird, wild world of James Wan's Malignant.
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It’s interesting. The Mummy was supposed to be her "big break" into the A-list blockbuster world. While the movie itself stumbled, it solidified her reputation as an actor who can handle extreme physical demands and high-pressure sets. She’s one of the few people who can say they survived a plane crash with Tom Cruise and lived to tell the tale on Graham Norton.
Actionable Insights for Movie Fans
If you're going back to rewatch The Mummy 2017, try to view it through a different lens. Ignore the "Dark Universe" logos and the setup for movies that never happened.
1. Watch the Zero-G Sequence again. Now that you know they were actually falling out of the sky, the tension in Wallis’s face hits differently. It’s not acting; it’s survival.
2. Look for the Prodigium Easter Eggs. Jenny Halsey’s character is the gatekeeper to a lot of lore. If you pay attention to her dialogue, you see the foundations of a world that was actually quite interesting, even if the execution failed.
3. Follow her career trajectory. Wallis is a prime example of an actor who outshines a "box office bomb." Check out her work in The Loudest Voice or The Silencing to see her range beyond the blockbuster scale.
Ultimately, Annabelle Wallis in The Mummy is a reminder that even in a "failure," there is often incredible craft happening behind the scenes. She did the work, took the hits, and stayed standing when the dust settled. Next time you're scrolling through streaming options, give the 2017 version a chance—not for the CGI monsters, but for the actress who gave it her all while literally weightless.