Variety’s Actors on Actors
Recently, Variety announced the 23rd season of their Actors on Actors series as they make the leap from YouTube to CNN in a new partnership with the news channel. The chat show has Hollywood peers interview each other and normally combines an interesting pair for their episodes. One of the newest episodes of this season will feature a mini-reunion of The Mummy Returns with Brendan Fraser on the show to talk about Rental Family and he’s joined by Dwayne Johnson to talk his dramatic turn in The Smashing Machine. Fraser and Johnson battled each other (technically) in the 2001 action-adventure as Rick O’Connell vs The Scorpion King.
Championing Johnson for The Scorpion King
When their conversation started, Johnson first wanted to show his appreciation to Fraser, “You and I first connected on The Mummy Returns. That was one of the biggest franchises in the world at that time. I was ready to make my transition into Hollywood. And there was a moment where you could have said, ‘This guy, Dwayne Johnson, he’s never acted before; he’s in pro wrestling.’ The word I got back was, ‘Brendan loves the idea. He welcomed you with open arms.’ It meant something to me, because you took a risk on me, and years later, you and I are sitting here. I want to thank you for really changing my life.”
Fraser would add how he supported Johnson’s casting for the Stephen Sommers sequel. He explained,
You were always the right guy for the job. When I was told that you were a possibility for it, forgive me, but I didn’t know you from the wrestling world. And when I was shown, I said, ‘That is inspired casting. We’d be lucky to get the guy.’ You need a stadium persona to play a villain you love to hate. It’s going to take a lot of confidence and belief. In the wrestling world, you were painting with a 10-inch brush — you need to have big energy.”
A new Mummy movie for the fans
The adventures of Rick O’Connell don’t end with The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor as a new entry has been recently announced. Fraser has said he’s ready to come back as “The one I wanted to make was never made.”
“The third one was a model of … how can I say this to the AP reporter? NBC had the rights to broadcast the Olympics that year,” Fraser said. “So they put two together and we went to China. Working in Shanghai, an incredible experience. I’m proud of the third one because I think it’s a good standalone movie. We picked up and did what we do with a different crew on deck and gave it our best shot. But the one I wanted to make is forthcoming. And I’ve been waiting 20 years for this call. Sometimes it was loud, sometimes it was a faint telegraph. Now? It’s time to give the fans what they want.”
