The Mummy: The Path to Becoming a Bisexual Movie Paradigm

The Mummy: How to awaken the emotions and desires of a generation of bisexuals

When I think back to the moment I first saw The Mummy (1999), I can't remember exactly where I was. The movie seemed to have been made for hieroglyphic-obsessed teenagers searching for stray vipers on the sidewalk. Maybe I was in a movie theater, watching the death scenes of those carnivorous saint beetles through the cracks in my hands; maybe I was at a sleepover trying to stay in my sleeping bag as the adrenaline spiked; or maybe I simply stumbled upon the film during a night of channel surfing, witnessing some of the best hair styles blowing in the locust-infested winds. In either case, I'm sure I don't remember the details because I was too busy watching fascinating characters searching for treasure in hotter deserts, too busy pretending my little world wasn't crumbling at the speed of a frivolous camel race.

As the movie begins, when curious librarian Evelyn (played by Rachel Weisz) meets capricious explorer Rick (played by Brendan Fraser), they immediately share the unmistakable fact that if they don't meet each other face-to-face soon, they may die of thirst. Confronted by a wild man with a mysterious past, she instinctively holds her breath when their eyes make contact; convinced he's dying, he sees his last chance to make out with a heartbreakingly beautiful woman. Rick is the quintessential Indiana Jones adventure hero, with a snarky smile to match, while Evie is a stubborn scholar with an intense love for the danger she represents. Both are filled with a desperate desire that surprises them equally, and this tension never wanes for the rest of the movie until the nominal mummy is vanquished and they can finally express their explicit carnal desires.

Looking back at my fascination with The Mummy (and the even more over-the-top 2004 sequel, The Mummy Returns), the roots seem all too obvious. I was on the cusp of childhood and adolescence, facing the charismatic magnetism of Rachel Weisz and Brendan Fraser, who were at the height of their roguish powers. My friends loved this movie too, but when we watched it together, I sat there knowing I was watching it a little differently. It just took me longer to realize that I related to them so strongly when I saw the first scene where their characters meet through the bars of Rick's cell, look at each other and know that their lives will never be the same. They longed for each other so much, so obviously, that it made me realize - years before I said it out loud - how much I longed for both of them, too.

Of course, it wasn't until I logged onto Tumblr as a teenager that I realized I wasn't alone. Around the world, it seems, The Mummy has awakened a generation of sleeping bisexuals. Some wax poetic about Evie and Rick as separate entities worthy of desire; some focus on their shared passion as a couple; others attribute their sexuality solely to the movie ("The Mummy is why I'm bisexual"). A small but equally passionate faction attributed their adolescent longings to the union of Imhotep (Arnold Vosloo) and Anck-su-Namun (Patricia Velasquez), whose ancient Egyptian affair was so forbidden (hot) that it doomed both of them to eternal misery (less drastic, but very important as the inciting incident of how mankind came to be the all-powerful mummy). Many of us tend toward that particularly annoying "we were there first" complacency, as Vyse, an overall incredibly charismatic performer, seems to be choosing more and more roles, aiming her sexual energy directly at other women. For every generation of cool kids, a new "Ooooh, that's why I'm so obsessed" moment was born, so my bisexual millennial siblings and I were drawn to The Mummy.

However, 25 years after its release, there's another key reason why this movie has stirred so much of our imagination in the way it has. Vyse and Fraser are obviously beautiful, but that's true for basically every star in every action movie. It's worth noting, for example, that when the 2017 reboot of The Mummy attempted to draft Tom Cruise's smash hit, with huge computer-animated action scenes and no memorable romance, it failed miserably enough for Universal to scrap much of its planned "Monsters" universe altogether. It's not enough to choose competent action heroes and expect sparks to fly. For any movie that sends a major character into mortal danger and back again, heat is a prerequisite at the most basic level. It's rare - especially nowadays - to see such an action movie as The Mummy it prioritizes the electrical chemistry of its protagonist as well as the explosive twists and turns of its plot. "Everyone is beautiful, no one is horny," as Benedict memorably and succinctly puts it, and God forbid a character should feel a tremor of desire while trying to save the world! More and more people feel that Hollywood blockbusters are happy to show their audiences the appearance of sex, rather than the tantalizing possibilities of foreplay, or the satisfaction that comes when it becomes more important.

Thankfully, the memo came too late for Evie and Rick. After connecting and having a child, shown here five years after The Mummy Returns, they did nothing to quell their inner need to throw each other against a wall, a bed, a dusty grave, whatever it took. Without their shared hunger, The Mummy would have been the perfect adventure movie. With it, The Mummy became much bigger than itself, a beacon of bisexuality for the movie age.

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