M3 Release Dates:
(subject to change)
July 31, Hong Kong
July 31, Malaysia
July 31, Singapore
July 31, Philippines
July 31, South Korea
July 31, Russia
July 31, Hungary
Aug. 1, USA/Canada
Aug. 1, Mexico
Aug. 1, Spain
Aug. 6, France
Aug. 7, Taiwan
Aug. 7, Germany
Aug. 8, UK
Aug. 8, Norway
Aug. 8, Austria
Aug. 8, Sweden
Aug. 13, Belgium
Aug. 14, Switzerland
Aug. 16, Japan
Sept. 2, China
Sept. 11, Australia
Sept. 11, New Zealand
Sept. 11, Greece
Sept. 26, Italy

Reviews & Articles:
Brisbane Times: Review
Time: Hong Kong Revives The Mummy
LA Times: Review: The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
Reuters: Michelle Yeoh brings kicks and poise to Mummy
Suite101: Rob Cohen's The Mummy
CelebrityCafe: Michelle Yeoh Gives Critics Something to Talk About

Interviews:
PressDemocrat: Mummy's strong women
Ain't It Cool: Moriarty Interview: Michelle Yeoh
Moviehole: Interview: Jet Li & Michelle Yeoh
Birmingham News: Michelle Yeoh defies the odds
Deadbolt: Inside the Dragon Emperor's Tomb with Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh
IESB: Interview: Rob Cohen Tackles THE MUMMY
IESB: Interview: Brendan Fraser Battles Another Mummy
IESB: Interview: Maria Bello Takes on THE MUMMY

Recent Films:
The Mummy 3
Babylon A.D.
Far North
Children of Huang Shi
Sunshine

All Films
News
Main

The Mummy 3 News: 
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[* For more news on Michelle Yeoh or site updates, please visit News page ]
[** More information to share? Please e-mail webmaster ]

(12/11/08) Special features for the two-disc DVD and blu-ray sets of The Mummy 3 with a video clip. Features include deleted and extended footage, segments on casting, stunts and other behind-the-scenes matters and commentary with director Rob Cohen. North American release date: December 16.

(11/14/08) The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor will be screened on November 22nd at 8th International Marrakech Film Festival. It is a part of the special tribute to Michelle, "Timeless Female Heroine". A total of 6 Michelle films will be screened and Michelle will be there to receive the honor. For detailed schedule please see News.

(10/14/08) - Universal Studios Home Entertainment has announced the technical specs and special features for the upcoming two-disc Deluxe Edition DVD and Blu-ray disk, to be released in the U.S. on December 16. (press)

Disc 1
• U-Control - Scene Explorer
• U-Control - Know Your Mummy
• U-Control - The Dragon Emperor's Challenge
• U-Control - Picture in Picture
• U-Control - Visual Commentary with Director Rob Cohen
• Deleted and Extended Scenes
• The Making of The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
• From City to Desert
• Legacy of the Terra Cotta
• Feature Commentary with Director Rob Cohen
• BD Live - My Scenes Sharing Exclusive Content
  Disc 2
• A Call to Action: The Casting Process
• Preparing for Battle with Brendan Fraser and Jet Li
• Jet Li: Crafting the Emperor Mummy
• Creating New and Supernatural Worlds
• Digital Copy of The Mummy: Tomb of the Emperor Dragon

- The U.K. Blu-ray/DVD release date is December 1st.

(09/22/08) A special presentation by Digital Domain and Rhythm & Hues Studios, showing how they created the special effects and imagery for The Mummy 3, will be held at Gnomon School of Visual Effects, Hollywood, 6-9 p.m. October 2.   (Details and RSVP)

(09/08/08) The boxoffice total of The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor has reached $355 million with the domestic total $100 million. Michelle said she's very happy the film is doing well globally. The film is to open in Australia, New Zealand, and Greece this Thursday and in Italy on September 26.

(09/05/08) - Scans from "Feminine" and "Galaxie", Malaysian magazines. For larger pictures and articles please visit Photos -> Magazines section.


(1-4) Michelle Yeoh and Isabella Leong   (5) Brendan Fraser, Maria Bello, Michelle, Jet Li, and Isabella Leong
- Trivia: Among the main Chinese cast, Jet Li is from Mainland China. Michelle is ethnic Chinese who is a Malaysian. Jessey Meng (Colonel Choi) is Taiwanese. Isabella Leong (Lin), Anthony Wong (General Yang) and Russell Wong (Ming Guo) are all mixed raced. Leong's father is Portuguese and her mother is Chinese. Anthony Wong (Chau-Sang) was born to an English father and a Chinese mother. Russell Wong is half Chinese, half Dutch.

- Video: Michelle Yeoh's revenge   (01:59, Mandarin Chinese) an interview with Michelle including behind scenes with Michelle and Jet Li

(09/05/08) Although the Chinese reviews of The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor have been more negative than positive, the film played strong in Mainland China and the first day box-office grossed $2 million at 1,158 screens.

Predictably, one of the big complaints is from the large crowd of fans of Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh. Audiences were disappointed that their sword fight was so short and surprised that it was choreographed more like ancient Roman gladiators rather than Chinese martial artists. Another big complaint is the bad Chinese dubbing. Many audience members felt it was like they were watching a Hong Kong TV series when hearing the familiar voices from Hong Kong TVB. Only Jet Li's real voice was kept, which made it more obvious that the other dubbed voices were out of character.

It is still not clear what the mysterious last minute cut ordered by Chinese authorities was all about. The China Film Bureau confirmed the cut and they said it was a "technical problem" concerning some copyright issue. But when reporters contacted various theatres, the respond they got was: "We are not allowed to talk about it. It is a sensitive issue".   Picture at right: "Cut. Cut. Cut". (click to enlarge. Picture from "Nanfang Daily", a Chinese newspaper which has been under great pressure for having reported some human rights issues during the past few years. Several of their managers and chief editors have been replaced/arrested.)

(09/02/08) - For those who have read the script or the movie tie-in novel of The Mummy 3, you may remember the description of this scene: when the foundation army turned into sand dust, the wind blew them into the sky and they formed the faces of Zi Yuan and Ming Guo. This scene was actually shown in some versions of the film, at least it was in the ones in Taiwan, Malaysia, and Macau. (see image at left. click to enlarge. thanks to Bin!) But it is not in the U.S. final version. Apparently there are multiple versions of the film, in addition to the Chinese cut.

- Talking about the Chinese cut, just a few hours before the midnight opening in Mainland China on September 1, after Chinese theaters had received the "final" copy, an urgent order came from a high official. Theatre managers were ordered to make one more cut themselves before showing the film to the audience. The portion which were required to be cut involved the end credits, which include the last 5 minutes of rolling credits, and also the special slice of the cast credits where Isabella Leong's name appears. Theatres were requested to keep quiet on this urgent cut and the cut portions (about 250 meters) had to be handed in to the authority. No further explanation has been offered. It is believed that the problem was not about the credits themselves but about the background pictures which had some Chinese characters in them (as the Mainland version was more specifically modified for their audiences, the cut that was ordered might not appear in other international released versions).

Among the changes made to the Mainland Chinese version, the roars of "Freedom! Freedom!" from Zi Yuan's army of undead has become "War! War!" The film was counted as co-production film instead of imported film. The dubbed voices were from TV actors from Hong Kong's TVB.

- After Tussaud Wax Museum in Hong Kong received one of Zi Yuan's gowns, Universal Pictures International provided another of the (same) gowns to the Tussaud Wax Museum in Shanghai, which was opened in June 2006. Photo at left: Michelle's wax figure at Tussaud Wax Museum Shanghai. ("Sohu" photo. click to enlarge)

(08/28/08) - Videos:
  Shanghai premiere: red carpet & ceremony   (19:30, in Mandarin)
  Red carpet & ceremony   (01:34, in Mandarin)
  Premiere ceremony   (07:08, in Mandarin)

- Photos: Michelle and Jet Li at the Shanghai premeire of The Mummy 3, August 28th.






last photo: Michelle, Jet Li, Ren Zhonglun (L1), manager of Shanghai Film Group Corp, and director Huang Jianxin (R1)
(click to enlarge. photos from "QQ","Sohu", "Sh Online", "tom", "Ifensi", "Beelink" and "163")
The Chinese premiere of The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor took place at the Shanghai Film Art Center, Shanghai. A press conference was held in the afternoon, with Jet Li and representatives from the Chinese production and distribution companies in attendance. Jet Li talked more about the One Foundation than the film itself. Reporters were disappointed that Michelle did not make it to the press conference (her plane was delayed) but happily they had chance to meet with her that evening at the premiere.

Michelle said her role in The Mummy 3 is not big but very interesting. The fights were very easy for both of them. When the director gave them several hours for rehearsal, they were done in an hour. Jet Li said he had a great time working with Michelle and he hopes they will have more chances to work together.

Both praised the Chinese team for their hard work and efficiency. Jet Li said director Rob Cohen was surprised how efficient the Chinese team was. Chinese crew members never said no to whatever request they received, even it might have meant a few hundred or thousand of crew had to sacrifice their rest time in order to finish the job, which would never happen in the U.S. or Canada. Michelle mentioned that in Montreal, when they asked for set decorations, they were usually told it would take 10 or 15 days. But in China, the response for the same type of request was: do you need it before or after the lunch? And Michelle brought a message from Rob Cohen: "The director asked me to thank all Chinese crew members and all audience here today for him."

(08/28/08) On August 27, Brendan Fraser and Luke Ford attended the Australian premier of the film in Sydney, Australia.

(08/27/08) The Chinese dubbed version of The Mummy 3 has been screened for local distributors and press in several cities. Jet Li's role, originally modeled after China's Emperor Qin, who was called simply "Emperor" in the final international version after several changes, has now become "Qiu Wang" (Autumn King) in the Chinese version. There haven't been any reports on what has been cut and what lines have been changed. Some media reports criticized the Chinese voice dubbing (not by any of the real actors) that they were plain, non-emotional, and the voices for the O'Connell father and son sounded identical. The theatrical release of the film in Mainland China is scheduled for September 2nd. Meanwhile, there have been multiple online pirated versions of the film available, including high quality ones.

On the 26th, Jet Li was in Guangzhou city and attended a M3 related press conference. The Chinese M3 distributor promised that for each Mummy 3 ticket sold they will donate 10 Chinese cents (1.46 US cents) to Li's charity One Foundation. Jet Li emphasized to the media that this is a commercial, entertaining film and he hopes the Chinese audiences will not focus on history and culture issues. When reporters commented that Jet Li had even fewer fights in the film than Isabella Leong's character, Li half joked that everyone in the film had more fights than he did. Asked about his impression of Isabella Leong, he said he basically did not share any scenes with her, really only one scene from a distance.

(08/27/08) Videos:
- Michelle's video greeting to Chinese Mummy fans through Sohu media   (00:21. in Mandarin Chinese)
- Download film clip: Zi Yuan calling the Foundation army   (00:20) (thanks Angela and Bin!)
- Sohu M3 special   (needs IE to view. 01:25. in Chinese & English)
    Around 00:55-01:05 it has bit filming of the sword fight of Michelle and Jet Li

(08/27/08) Official wallpapers (1280x1024. click to enlarge). For more M3 wallpapers please see Posters & Wallpapers section.


(08/24/08) Jet Li will be in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China on the 26th for the Mummy 3 promotion. It's not clear whether Michelle or other Chinese actors will be there.

Although during recent years, most of the Hollywood films have been shown in Mainland China in both Chinese-dubbed and original English language versions, reportedly The Mummy 3 will have only the Chinese version shown in the Mainland theatres (the pirate versions are in the original language with Chinese subtitles). The Chinese version has some scenes cut and dialog changes made on Chinese authority's demand. There is no report whether any Chinese actors will dub their own voices. I assume Jet Li's real voice will be kept since he spoke only Mandarin Chinese in the film.

(08/24/08) Two behind-scenes photos: Michelle and director Rob Cohen on Montreal set. (click to enlarge. "Yahoo" images)


(08/22/08) Chinese poster

(08/22/08) M3 props:



(1-3) costume display at ArcLight Hollywood   (4-6) Terra-cotta warriors at San Diego Comic-Con
(7-8) Zi Yuan's Oracle Bones   (9-10) wooden structure built for the depository of manuscripts
(click to enlarge. photos courtesy of bhk, tator, lewis, diaz and alaa)
(08/20/08) The Chinese premiere of The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is scheduled to take place in Shanghai, China on August 28. Shanghai news reported that Michelle and Jet Li will be attending.   (tickets)

(08/14/08)


The first photo is a promotional image published by Taiwanese media and it features (L to R) Maria Bello, Brendan Fraser, Jet Li, Isabella Leong, and Michelle. The othree three, with Michelle and Isabella Leong, were from a press interview in Japan on August 4. (click to enlarge. photos from "UIP" and "Mainichi")
      Watch the Interview   (05:26, Japanese subtitles)
In the interview Michelle spoke English and Isabella Leong Cantonese. In the middle Brendan Fraser jumped in.

More video clips from Japanese premiere and press conference can be seen from the Japanese Official Site. Enter "Japan Premiere" and each "Click!" contains 4 video clips. The film opens in Japan on August 16.

(08/12/08) While The Mummy 3 is not playing very strong in North America, it continues to top the international box office, finishing No.1 in 16 of 22 new territories which opened last weekend, including France, Germany, U.K. and Taiwan. The overseas tally is now $141.1 million, almost a double of the domestic total ($71 million). In Taiwan, the film collected $3.6 million from just 91 locations for an amazing per-screen average of $39,560. The Taiwan premiere took place on August 6th with Jessey Meng, the Taiwanese model who played the scar-faced Colonel Choi in the film in attendance.

In Mainland China, reportedly the release date has been moved forward to the beginning of September. I have been reading some Chinese movie discussion boards (many of the Chinese audience have watched the film from pirate sources) and not so surprisingly, many posts showed anger toward the film - the posters claimed the "foreign filmmakers" did not know Chinese history and angry about China's Emperor Qin being portrayed as an evil figure. Here I'd like to point out in China, the internet "voices" by no means reflect what the majority of Chinese people think. First, a large number of internet users are young people who grew up under the Chinese communist government's "education". Second, the internet in China is totally controlled by the government. Many posts can not get published (blocked by the "filters") or get deleted soon after posting. Two examples from my own recent experience: Once I was trying to post the Chinese text of Zi Yuan and Emperor's lines when they were calling their armies to battle. It kept getting rejected because it contains the message on "freedom". And after the opening ceremony of the Olympics, I was reading what Mainland Chinese thought about the event and discovered that all the negative posts were disappearing under my eyes (saw the subjects but they disappeared when I tried to click to read)!

(08/09/08) Video: Highlights from the Japanese press conference   Aug. 5   (06:07, in Japanese and English)   (thanks Sako from Japan!).
Isabella Leong, Brendan Fraser, and Michelle greeted everyone in Japanese. The video also shows Manami Kurose singing, Michelle being presented with the birthday surprise, and the funny bit on Michelle stopping Fraser from keeping "stealing" icing from the cake. More photos from the event can be seen at News.

(08/06/08) HAPPY BIRTHDAY MICHELLE
Our Birthday Greetings to Michelle

- Reports:
   Happy "19th" Birthday to Mummy star Michelle Yeoh
   Japan premiere for Mummy movie

(08/05/08) On August 5th, a press conference was held in Tokyo for the Mummy 3 promotion. A birthday cake was presented to Michelle during the news conference, a day prior to her birthday (August 6). Japanese actress and singer Manami Kurose, who performs the Japanese version of the end title song for the film (Japanese title: "Hamunaputora 3"), sang "happy birthday" for Michelle. The cake was decorated with an image of the "Eye of Shangri-La".

Video from Japanese promotion   (01:13)


1-4:Michelle, Brendan Fraser, and Isabella Leong at the M3 news conference in Tokyo
5. Manami Kurose (left) sings to Michelle




2-4: a birthday cake for Michelle   5-6: Brendan Fraser licks a piece of the cake
(click to enlarge. photos from "Reuters", "Cinema Today", "Japan Today", "Hamunaptra 3" and "Getty")
(08/04/08) - Photos from the Japanese premiere, Tokyo, August 4th. Michelle, Brendan Fraser, and Isabella Leong attended the event.



(click to enlarge. photos from "AP", "Reuters", "Sanspo", "Sina", "Baidu" and "Getty")
- Reviews/Articles:
    Michelle Yeoh brings kicks and poise to "Mummy"
    Michelle Yeoh Shines in the New Mummy
    Jet: Michelle best in the world

- The Mummy 3 took the top spot at the foreign box office during the opening weekend, landing No. 1 in 26 of its 28 markets, including Hong Kong, South Korea, Malaysia, Russia, Spain, and Mexico. Grossing an estimated $59.5 million, the film substantially outpaced comparable openings for the first two Mummy films in the same markets ("The Mummy" $16.7 million and "The Mummy Returns" $21.5 million). It opened No. 2 in North America, grossing $40.5 million, which brought worldwide weekend tally $100 million.

In Mainland China, the release date has been postponed to September 24th. The filmmakers have to make the changes demanded by the Chinese authority before the film can be shown to the Chinese audience. However, now the online movie links to the pirate versions of The Mummy 3 are everywhere and from Chinese movie discussion boards we can see that MANY people have already watched it and even written their reviews based on the bad quality pirate versions.

- Taking advantage of the new big screen pairing of Jet Li and Michelle, Dragon Dynasty re-released the DVD of Tai Chi Master, a fantastic 1993 Hong Kong martial arts film starring Jet and Michelle. The film was previously released on DVD in the US by Miramax under the title Twin Warriors, but with some dialogue changes and scene cuts, and the music was rewritten. The Dragon Dynasty version includes both the original Cantonese soundtrack (subtitled) and an optional English dubbing.
Order Tai Chi Master DVD from Amazon

(08/01/08) - Michelle is in Tokyo now. The Japanese premiere of The Mummy 3 will be held in Tokyo on August 4th.

- Videos from CBS's "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson":
    Interview with Jet Li (July 29, 09:30)
    Interview with Michelle Yeoh (July 30, 08:45, including a new film clip)

- The prologue narration was not Michelle's voice, btw.

(07/30/08) - Videos:
    Comic Con M3 Panel:   Part II (09:11)   Part I (09:59)
    Interview with Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh   (MannyTheMovieGuy)
    LA premiere (05:51)
    Rob Cohen Interview (06:22, shocktillyoudrop)

- Hong Kong premiere of The Mummy 3 took place on July 29th. Anthony Wong and Jessey Meng, who play General Yang and Colonel Choi in the film, attended the event ("Sina" photo. click to enlarge). The film opens in Hong Kong on July 31st.

- Reportedly the release date for Mainland China is tentatively scheduled on September 24th.

- Articles:   Mano a Mano With The Mummy   Michelle: I believe in afterlife

(07/28/08) The U.S. premiere of The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor took place on Sunday July 27 at Universal Studios Hollywood. The film will open in 3600 plus locations this coming Friday.

Premiere videos:   AP video (03:04)   Truveo (01:28)

Reports:   The Morning Call   Yell   Hello


1 (L to R). Jet Li, Michelle, Brendan Fraser, and director Rob Cohen   2. Michelle with Brendan Fraser, Jet Li and Li's daughter
3. Michelle greeting with Rob Cohen   4. Michelle with Russell Wong and Isabella Leong   5. Michelle and Jet Li


1. Michelle signing autographs for fans   2. Michelle, Jet Li, Li's daughter, Universal Pictures' chairman Marc Shmuger (L2)
and President and Chief Operating Officer Ron Meyer (L1)   3-5. John Hannah, Luke Ford, Maria Bello at the premiere
(click to enlarge. photos from "Wire Image" and "Getty". more premiere images see News)
(07/27/08) - Photos from San Diego Comic-Con, July 26. Right photo: main cast members at San Diego Comic-Con (from right to left) - Brendan Fraser, Jet Li, Maria Bello, Michelle Yeoh, John Hannah, Luke Ford and Isabella Leong (click to enlarge). They showed a new clip of the Yetis from the film and took questions from the audience. (report)


- Video intervews:
    * Access Hollywood: Jet Li & Michelle Yeoh Talk The Mummy   (04:04)
    * MovieGuy: Jet Li & Michelle Yeoh Interview   (04:21)
    * LatinoReview: Comic-Con - John Hannah   (04:26)
    * LatinoReview: Comic-Con - Isabella Leong   (01:06)
    * LatinoReview: Comic-Con- Luke Ford   (01:24)
    * LatinoReview: Comic-Con- Brendan Fraser   (05:20)

- Philippines site: Inquirer.net - The Mummy

(07/26/08) Video: Making of The Mummy 3   part I (09:15)   part II (10:45)
The video contains tons of behind the scenes footage as well as interviews of the key cast and crew members. Also the Official Site has some new clips.

(07/26/08) Key cast members including Brendan Fraser, Jet Li and Michelle will be at Comic-Con San Diego this afternoon. Universal's special panel starts at 3:45pm, Hall H.   It's also mentioned at the end of the video Kelli Gillespie interview with Michelle and Jet Li (03:14).

(07/25/08) - Promotional photos from Chinese magazine "Movie". 1st image: Brendan Fraser, Maria Bello, Michelle, Jet Li, and Isabella Leong. Rest: Jet Li, Michelle, and Brendan Fraser. (click to enlarge. thanks "A Bird" for the scans!)


- Interview/article links:
    * "She's Mummy's girl and a whole lot more Michelle Yeoh defies the odds to become an international star"   page 1 page 2
    * Michelle Yeoh brings mix of silk and steel to latest Mummy film

(07/24/08) The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor premiered (world premiere?) in Moscow, Russia on July 24th. Brendan Fraser, Maria Bello, Jet Li, and Michelle attended the event. The film will open in Russian cinemas on July 31st.

Videos from the Moscow premiere:
  - Premeire ceromony (01:27)
  - Photocall and premeire ceromony (04:07)

Brendan Fraser, Maria Bello, Jet Li and Michelle at the premiere

Michelle attending the Mummy III premiere in Moscow

Maria Bello	Brendan Fraser	Jet Li	Michelle and Jet Li
(click on photos to enlarge. photos from "Antonb", "Moskva", "Film", "Yahoo" and "Superiorpics")

(07/24/08) M3 Production Notes   (doc document. 56 pages. thanks Denzylle)
The production notes contain information on making the story, casting of the film, 91 days of filming on two continents, production design, swordplay and martial arts, VFX, and bios of cast and crew. In the custume design part, it mentions that one of Isabella Leong's outfits was inspired by Tibetan national costumes. The designer created nine beautiful costumes for Michelle, designs not exactly determined by the period since her role is as a sorceress. "When Michelle put them on, they became alive. She is so graceful and wears the costume so beautifully. The way she moves and holds her neck... she almost floats," said the designer Sanja Hays. Hays also recounted the making of Michelle's costume for her final sword fight: "It was for the big sword fight with Jet Li where she wears a pleated skirt. I bought a knee-length skirt for myself in Shanghai; I swirled in it, and the way it moved was amazing. We made it in a long version, and one of the girls here, Malika, went through hell trying to figure out how they did it. Everything was hand-pleated, but we finally figured it out. The skirt is very straight when Michelle is standing, but when she kicks, fights and swirls in it, it flies out in a full circle. I can't wait to see it on screen."

(07/23/08) News photos from a media photocall for the Mummy promotion, Berlin, July 23rd.


1. (L to R) Jet Li, Michelle, Brendan Fraser and Maria Bello
2-4. King and Queen of the Asian Kung-Fu cinema


Michelle with Maria Bello during the photocall
(click to enlarge. photos from "WireImage", "Time Wrap" and "AP")
(07/23/08) - The U.S. premiere of The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor will take place on Sunday July 27 at Gibson Amphitheatre, Universal Studios Hollywood. Director, producers, screenwriters and all main stars - Brendan Fraser, Jet Li, Maria Bello, John Hannah, Russell Wong, Luke Ford, Isabella Leong and Michelle - are scheduled to attend. (Press release)

- M3 promotion late night talk show lineups:
    Monday, July 28, Brendan Fraser, "Tonight Show With Jay Leno"
    Tuesday, July 29, Jet Li, "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson"
    Wednesday July 30, Michelle Yeoh, "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson"
    Wednesday July 30, Maria Bello, "Conan O'Brien"
    Friday, August 1, Brendan Fraser, "Conan O'Brien"; Brendan Fraser, Maria Bello, "The View"

- Last week from the 15th to 18th, there were several press junkets for the M3 promotion in Los Angeles. A special screening for the press was held on the 17th. Michelle and Jet Li accepted multiple interviews. Brendan Fraser, Maria Bello, Luke Ford and Isabella Leong also attended some of the junkets.

Videos:
    Jet Li, Michelle Yeoh Interview   (in English)
    Brendon Fraser Interview
    Maria Bello Interview
    Rob Cohen Interview
    Michelle, Jet Li, Luke Ford, Isabella Leong   (01:17, in Chinese and English)


Michelle, Brendan Fraser, Maria Bello and Jet Li at M3 press conference
at Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills, July 15
(click to enlarge. photos from "WireImage". More photos see News july 23)
(07/22/08) - Five new M3 clips can be seen at ShockTillYouDrop. Clip#2 features Michelle and Jet Li's sword fight.

- New poster and M3 promotional images (click to enlarge. "Mingpao" and "IGN"):

Poster

Sorceress Zi Yuan (HQ)

Michelle (R) and Isabella Leong

Maria Bello, Brendan Fraser, Isabella Leong, Michelle, and Jet Li

General Ming Guo	Zi Yuan & Ming Guo	Zi Yuan	Emperor & Zi Yuan	Ming Guo & Emperor

Zi Yuan in Shangri-La	Terra-cotta warriors		Rick & Evelyn with Foundation army	Lin facing the three-head-dragon

General Yang vs Yeti	Alex & Lin	Rick & Evelyn discuss artifacts with Benjamin Fry	Rick & Evelyn O'Connell, Jonathan Carnahan

- After Universal agreed to make all the cuts and changes demanded by the Chinese authority, The Mummy 3 has obtained permission for the film to be released in Mainland China. The Chinese distributor said the changes will be minor and the fluency of the film story should not be affected. Reportedly the requested cuts/changes include scenes which reflect the cruelty of the evil emperor, such as killing slavery workers during building the Great Wall and "Che Lie" of General Guo. Currently there is no release date set for China. The common guess is that it will be sometime after the Olympics, no earlier than late August.

Note that obtaining release permission may not guarentee a theatrical release of the film in China. Sony's Memoir of a Geisha, starring Zhang Ziyi, Gong Li and Michelle, was denied a public release despite the film having been approved by the authority in November 2005. China's political situation is unstable. Things such as policy change, additional rules, decisions being turned over, etc., are not a surprise and can affect release.

(07/12/08) [Notice] I'm going for a trip and most likely I won't have time to update the site before July 22nd.

Yesterday Brendan Fraser appeared at Universal Studios Orlando's Revenge of the Mummy for M3 promotion. Press junkets will be held next week in LA with main stars attending.

(07/11/08) In January 2001, Michelle's wax double was unveiled at the Madame Tussaud Wax Museum in Hong Kong. The statue had been dressed in a Wai Lin gown for 1997's Tomorrow Never Dies (see photos of the wax double). Now the museum has changed it to one of Zi Yuan's gowns from The Mummy 3, donated by Universal Pictures International. A M3 trailer is being played next to the wax statue.


(click to enlarge. photos from "Sun", "Mingpao" and "CNA")
(07/11/08) After playing a lot of "guessing games", the Chinese media has finally gotten a confirmation that the Mummy 3 will not be released in Mainland China as scheduled, originally set to come out on July 29th. The Chinese authorities demanded certain changes to the film. No details have been given to the public, nor a possible release date.

Although the M3 filmmakers tried not to make any political statement in the film, they may not realize that the Chinese communist government is very paranoid. If they see a portrayed villain has similar characteristics as they do, they would think you are referring to them. Mummy heroes defeating the tyrannical Emperor who crushes the people's freedom -- I'd be quite surprised if the Chinese authorities allowed this theme to go into China smoothly.

Link: China demands 'Mummy' changes (Variety)

(07/08/08) A movie tie-in novel, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, was released on July 1st. Written by by Max Allan Collins, the novel is based on the screenplays by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar and with no access to the actual film. Comparing it to the screenplay version from July 3, 2007, I noticed some minor changes and a few scenes left out of the script:
   1. no battle between Zi Yuan (Michelle) and General Yang (Anthony Wong)
   2. no sword fight between the emperor (Jet Li) and General Ming Gao (Russell Wong)
   3. no appearance of General Yang's father
   4. added a scene between General Yang (Anthony Wong) and Colonel Choi (Jessey Meng)
The emperor character in the book is "Er Shi Huangdi", aka Qin Er Shi, the second as well as the last emperor of the Qin Dynasty (see a background story at 01/04/08). We knew already that originally it was meant to be Qin Shi Huang, the first Qin Emperor, but since Chinese authorities did not like the idea, the production company had to change the name several times and it will be Emperor Han in the film.

The third installment of the Mummy series will change the story/location from Egypt to China. NBC Universal even tried to tie the film up with the Beijing Olympics in their promotion. Ironically, the film may have to be delayed in Mainland China because of the Olympics event. Reportedly Chinese authorities don't think the film will fit with the Olympics so they postponed the censor procedure until after the event. At this moment, it is not clear if the film will be able to be shown in China at all. Even if the authorities don't give filmmakers too much trouble and eventually give it permission for release, by that time most of Chinese audience who wanted to see the film would have already seen it from bootleg sources.

(07/08/08) The sound track of The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is expected to be released on July 29 by Varese Sarabande records.

1. A Call To Adventure (Theme From Mummy 3) (3:02)
2. Silently Yearning For Centuries (2:23)
3. Open Wound (2:05)
4. The Reign Of Terror (2:48)
5. A Family Presses Close (2:36)
6. Formation Of The Terra Cotta Army (3:07)
7. Reading Of The Scrolls (3:54)
8. Crash And Burn (2:24)
9. Alex And Lin (1:13)
10. A New Assignment (2:53)
11. Yang Follows The O Connells (2:53)
12. Shanghai Chase (4:50)
13. Mother And Daughter Reunion (2:01)
14. Ancient China (2:22)
15. Rick's Long Rod (0:42)
16. Entering The Tomb (5:52)
17. Visit From A 3-Headed Friend (1:36)
18. Memories, Retirement And Dinner (2:30)
19. New Year's Betrayal (2:23)
20. The Emperor Versus Zi Yuan (1:44)
21. Love In The Himalayas (2:10)
22. 2nd Century B.C. (1:09)
23. The Museum Becomes Alive! (1:41)
24. Rick And Evy In Battle (2:40)
25. A Warm Rooftop (1:21)
26. Heartbreak (2:36)
27. Return Of The Dragon (2:47)
28. Shielding A Son (2:30)
29. Finale (3:25)
30. My Sweet Eternal Love, Performed by Helen Feng (2:53)

(07/08/08) Recently several press have been invited to visit the M3 edit bay with director Rob Cohen.
   Rob Cohen: Wrapping The Mummy
   Cohen Striving For Special-Effects Perfection 'Until They Pry It Out Of My Hands'
   A Visit To The "Mummy" Edit Bay

(07/03/08) - The Hollywood premiere of The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor will be held on Sunday July 27 in Hollywood, California.

- Hong Kong media reported that Michelle, Jet Li and Isabella Leong will be in Los Angeles during July 15 - 17 for the M3 promotion.

- Two TV Spots are available at Mummy 3 official website (under "Video").

(06/30/08) - A new behind-scenes video, "A Look Inside", is available at Papa John's.
- Papa John's M3 pizza boxes
- Mummy 3 official website has some new features up.
- "Ain't it Cool" has two reviews on the two recent test screenings in California (contain spoilers): 1 2
    I heard that Michelle narrated the prologue of the film.
- M3 posters: South Korea, Germany, France and Taiwan (click to enlarge):


(06/29/08) [AN UPDATE TO NOTICE from June 3] First, I'd like to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who has been concerned about my friend Wen in China, regardless of whether you have written to me. After a month...   Read more...

(06/27/08) The summer issue of the French magazine "L'Ecran Fantastique" will have a special feature on the film including new interviews of Brendan Fraser, Jet Li and Michelle. (cover pic)

(06/25/08) - The official pictorial moviebook, "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor", will be published by Newmarket Press on August 1st, same day as the theatrical release in the U.S.. 160 pages, paperback and hardcover.

- Posters for Taiwan, Hong Kong and Japan have been added to the M3 Posters section.
The title of "The Mummy" has been translated into three different Chinese titles in three different regions of China: "Shen Gui Chuan Qi" in Taiwan, "Dao Mu Mi Cheng" in Hong Kong, and "Mu Nai Yi" in Mainland China.

- Reportedly, the film has been facing some difficulties getting the Chinese authorities' approval. The original plan of releasing the film in Asia a week ahead - especially in Mainland China - had to be changed. The new release date for Hong Kong is now July 31st and for Taiwan August 7th. There is no official word about the release date in Mainland China. Rumors say that Chinese authorities think some of the material in the film does not fit with the current "rules" of censorship, especially during the "sensitive" Olympic period. Chinese media have guessed this film eventually should be able to pass the censorship and get a release permit, but with some delays. The release date in Malaysia is July 31 and Japan is August 16.

(06/23/08) The Mummy 3 display/posters. The first three are photos of a huge M3 display at this year's Cinema Expo in Amsterdam.


(click to enlarge. Pictures from "Movie Soon" and "Filmz")
(06/20/08) Full new trailer of The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. 
      Watch online   [02:28]
      Download: Low (16.33 Mb)  HD Medium (70 Mb)  HD High (118.63 Mb)

Dragon Emperor		Zi Yuan and Ming Guo	emperor's soldiers

Zi Yuan fighting with the mummy emperor	emperor's army awaken (images from Rob Cohen's Blog. click to enlarge)

(06/17/08) Director Rob Cohen updated us the process of the M3 post-production in his production blog. The film will be 1 hour and 54 minutes. A full trailer is coming out June 27th.

(06/17/08) The novel written by Max Allan Collins, "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor", which is based on the screenplay by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, will be published by Berkley on July 1st. 256 pages. (pre-order   ISBN: 0425223132, 978-0425223130)
Image at left: book cover.

- M3 game covers: PlayStation2  Wii  DS

(06/15/08) An interesting interview with director Rob Cohen: Conversation: The Mummy Rises Again (thanks Denzylle)
Cohen talked about his love for Chinese culture, how they interpolated Chinese history and archaeology, their works including re-creating the tomb, 500 replicas of terracotta warriors (with extra weapons in their hands: crossbows, halberds, pikes, and swords), horses and chariots. Rob Cohen confirmed that the villain in M3 is indeed tyrannical Qin Shihuang (aka Qin Shihuangdi), the first Qin emperor, but, "we're not allowed to say this is based on Qin Shihuangdi," said Cohen. (for related earleir reports please see 01/04/08 and 07/27/07)

In another interview, director Cohen confirmed several lines of dialogue relating to the imperialistic ambitions of the emperor had to be changed at the behest of Chinese authorities, according to "Screen Daily". The film is currently going through the official screenings required for a Chinese release. China's "Information Times" reported that there might be a chance that The Mummy 3 will hit cinemas in Mainland China on August 1st.

(06/12/08) A press junket for The Mummy 3 is currently scheduled for July 14-15 in Los Angeles. Rob Cohen, Brendan Fraser, Maria Bello, Luke Ford, Jet Li, and Michelle are all scheduled to attend.

Still in post-production, the film has not yet been rated. The North American release date is August 1 and it is expected to open at 3750 plus locations. Originally the film company had planned the world opening of the film to take place in China on July 24. At this moment it is not clear if it can go as planned. The Mummy 3 is not shown on China's current summer release list. Meanwhile, the film will open in other Asian territories such as Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore on July 24/25 and Malaysia on July 31.

(06/12/08) The Mummy Tomb of the Dragon Emperor Game Trailer
Below are some screenshots from the game which have the same sets as in the film. For more details and screenshots of the Mummy 3 game please see 05/08/08.

(1) Shanghai street   (2-4) Shanghai Museum (5) bedroom in the monastery (what is O'Connell family doing here?)

(1-2) the gear chamber		(3-5) tomb
(click to enlarge. photos from "Worthplaying")

(06/03/08) [NOTICE] I'm sorry to announce that I may not have time to update this site for several days, or even longer. I just learned terrible news from China. Read more...

(06/02/08) - The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is scheduled to open on July 25 in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore, a week ahead of the US release. Currently there is no release date announced for Mainland China. It is not clear if the film has been "approved" by the Chinese authority.

- There will be a special preview of The Mummy 3 during Fangoria's Weekend of Horrors convention, to be held June 20-22 in New Jersey.

(05/25/08) - Director Rob Cohen will be in London this week working on the film score and taking a few London-base shots with Brendan Fraser, Maria Bello and John Hannah.

- A cool M3 trailer story (Maxim) : page 1 page 2

- A report from the press interviews in LA on May 15th. Universal arranged meetings with Michelle, Maria Bello, and Isabella Leong.

Michelle told reporters that one of the main reasons she got interested in the project is that she would have martial art fights with Jet Li. Director Rob Cohen sent her a very warm invitation letter and actor Vin Diesel, who worked with Rob Cohen before and was filming Babylon A.D. with Michelle at the time, said the director is easy to work with. So she agreed to star. Michelle praised Rob Cohen's passion for Chinese culture. And she said he is very willing to listen to other's opinions. Before the shooting began, she gave some suggestions to the director and they were all accepted.

The filming of the battle with Jet Li went smoothly. The important part was to show emotions during the fight, said Michelle. The most difficult part came from the costumes. Those costumes and ornaments may look magnificent, but they were very heavy. To make the costumes swing during the fight was not any easier than handling the weapons. Michelle said with a smile that other actors envied her for having more costumes and having the most beautiful costumes in the film. Luckily this time she did not get injured, although one time was almost too close. During one fight sequence, Jet Li's sword almost cut her nose and fortunately she moved away fast enough.

Isabella Leong said it was her first Hollywood film and she was very nervous during the screen tests. She said she actually failed during the first try. Luckily for her the director give her second chance. She trained very hard for the action scenes and many people helped her. She was relieved that the director arranged stunt doubles for some of the more difficult movements. Another big challenge for her was English. She said Luke Ford was very patient with her. Isabella Leong said Michelle was her real model and she has learned a lot from Michelle. She said she was very touched by Michelle for her caring and help. Leong said it is a pity she did not have many scenes with Jet Li.

Maria Bello said she always wanted to play an action role and The Mummy 3 fulfilled her dream. She was very excited. She did not have experience in action films, but she really enjoyed practicing martial arts and sword fighting. She said one unforgettable shot was during the filming of a scene of her and Brendan Fraser fighting with six Terra-cotta warriors. Since those were special effect shots, they were actually filmed in front of a green screen and "fighting" with imaginary opponents. It was her first experience with green screen filming and she could not hold back her laughs. They ended having to repeat the shot many times. She said Brendan Fraser was nice, patient, and always in high spirits. Bello said since the characters are supposed to be more than 10 years older than in the previous Mummy, it should not be surprising for the actress change.

(05/16/08) On Thursday May 15th, the three female leads of The Mummy 3, Michelle, Maria Bello, and Isabella Leong accepted press interviews at Casa Del Mar Hotel on the Santa Monica beach. From 11:00am to 4:00pm, each of them met with groups of journalists from areas including Hong Kong, Italy, and Germany.

Michelle at the press meetings		Maria Bello	Isabella Leong
(click to enlarge. photos from "Sun" and "Hz")

(05/16/08) - Teaser trailer of "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor":   Watch   Download [01:54, 37MB HD]

- Here are some new images. The first one is a new poster. 2nd one is the M3 teaser poster on a building in Cannes during the Cannes Film Festival.




(click to enlarge. "Universal Pictures" and "Sina")
(05/14/08) A M3 teaser trailer will debut in U.S. theaters this Friday with prints of Prince Caspian, and will make the international debut on May 22th with prints of Indiana Jones 4. Fans can also enjoy it online at Rob Cohen's blog this Friday.

The upcoming new deluxe edition DVD and Blu-ray release of The Mummy, due to hit store shelves in July, will include a sneak peak and a ticket offer for The Mummy 3.

(05/10/08) Hong Kong media reported that Michelle and Isabella Leong will be in Santa Monica, California this coming Thursday for The Mummy 3 publicity and they will accept press interviews. Director Rob Cohen was in Hong Kong a couple of days ago and he met with several Chinese media.

(05/08/08) Sierra Entertainment, a Los Angeles-based game developer and publisher, has announced its plans to release "The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor", a video game adaptation of The Mummy 3 film, on July 22nd in North America.

Players will take on the role of Rick O'Connell and his son Alex. Voice talent includes Brendan Fraser, Luke Ford, John Hannah and Michelle. The game is currently in development for the Wii, PlayStation 2 and Nintendo DS, featuring the locations of the film from the Chinese catacombs to the Himalayan peaks, with action as well as puzzle solving and hieroglyphic decoding gameplay elements.

Links:  M3 Game Features   M3 Game official website


(click to enlarge)
(05/07/08) Media reported director Rob Cohen told "Heat" (U.K. magazine) that actress Rachel Weisz turned down the role of Evelyn in The Mummy 3 because the character was "too old": "I got a very angry phone call from her agent, saying she'll never play the mother of a 21-year-old. I said, 'OK, good, fine, bye.'" The role has been replaced by Maria Bello.

(05/01/08) Universal's official site for The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is up at www.TheMummy.com. So they have decided to call the evil character "Han Emperor" (for previous related reports see 01/04/08 and 07/27/07).

New images have been added to the Promotion Photos section.

(04/30/08) Director Rob Cohen has relaunched his newly designed website RobCohentheMummy.com. Here are some new production photos and concept art drawings (click to enlarge):

Michelle, Isabella Leong, and director Rob Cohen on the Shangri-La set		library in monastery / depository of manuscripts	underground astrolab	undead warrior

(04/29/08) Official teaser poster (click on image to see HQ version). Director Rob Cohen said he will go to London on May 27 to record Randy Edelman's score with the London Symphony Orchestra at Abbey Road, including traditional Chinese instruments, traditional Tibetan instruments, a choir, Buddhist monk chanters, and koto drum percussion.

(04/14/08) Quotes from the M3 script, July 3 2007.

          EMPEROR:
I will restore order and crush the scourge of freedom...
          ZI YUAN:
Open the currents of justice and the lost ways of honor. Bring down the wrath of the oppressed on this Emperor and all who follow him...
          EMPEROR:
I will slaughter without mercy. I will conquer without compassion...
          ZI YUAN:
I call upon the hundreds and the thousands to rise up and seize this moment, to take your victory, to take your justice and to take your revenge!

(04/02/08) "Access Hollywood" Video: Access Extended - BTS: 'The Mummy: Tomb Of The Dragon Emperor'   [02:02]
Tim Vincent's exclusive set visit featuring behind the scenes and interview with Brenden Fraser. There are three seconds of Michelle and Jet Li's sword fight at 00:53-00:55.

(03/28/08) New video from the official blog: "Visual Effects", Santa Monica, CA

(03/24/08) In the new update on The official blog, director Rob Cohen said Michelle will arrive in the U.S. tomorrow for the M3 sound dubbing. A trailer can be expected soon.

(03/17/08) - Some newly released M3 production photos (click to enlarge).


- "JoBlo" reported that a teaser trailer was shown on the ShoWest:

"A quick shot of the Great Wall of China. Brendan Fraser and crew are on an archaeological dig in China. They walk into a room full of stone statues. They talk about The Dragon Emperor and how he was cursed by his enemies and turned into a mummy of stone. Fraser accidentally sets something off that awakens the Dragon Emperor and he comes breaking out of his rockness and charging out of the tomb.

Everything afterwards came at us real fast but I swear I saw a Yeti in there somewhere and at the end there was an extended shot of a three-headed dragon creature who didn't look too happy. There was a 300-like shot of a mass of arrows coming down from the sky on some poor saps. Fraser and his son in the movie exchanging some banter and quick glimpses of Michelle Yeoh and Jet Li in action."

(03/12/08) Another poster of The Mummy 3 from the ShoWest 2008. (click to enlarge. "Comingsoon.net")

(03/11/08) Actress Maria Bello revealed that she has signed for three more sequels in Universal's Mummy franchise. Last week Luke Ford told Australian media there is a possibility for a spin-off of his Alex O'Connell character.

(03/11/08) Video: A night filming in Hengdian [00:59]  They were shooting one of the ancient time scenes, perhaps Dragon Emperor's army taking over the State of Chu.

Here are several good quality set photos from Hengdian. The first one was taken during the actual filming last November. The rest were taken in early December and you can see the unique M3 designs/decorations to the palace. The second one is the entrance pass to the Throne Room. (click to enlarge. photos by fergusthompson and kanegen)


(03/09/08) A teaser poster of The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, displayed at the ShoWest 2008. (click to enlarge)

(02/19/08) New video: Editing M3
Director Rob Cohen updated the The official blog yesterday. He said a teaser trailer can be expected within a month. The current version runs 125 minutes and the first studio screening is planned for February 28th. The VFX shots still need a lot of work.

(02/07/08) YouTube videos: M3 interviews by Mark Sung:
   - Interview with the action director Vic Armstrong (done in Shanghai at the end of last November)
   - Visual EFX, interview with Blaine Lougheed, the set data technician

(02/06/08) Some M3 set construction photos from the Mel's Cite du Cinema studio in Montreal:

"entrance" to Shangri-La

building Shangri-La
(click to enlarge. courtesy of Zeste Celestes and "fotoproze")

(01/18/08) - Malaysian New Straits Times published an interview with Brendan Fraser. Asked if he had to learn any new skills for the Asian setting movie, Fraser said: "Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh are starring in this film and the latter can kick an apple off my head. There is a more fluid style to this film because of the martial arts. Rick is not part of that school.... Rob suggested I study at the National Training Center in LA where they train in a combat self defense system called Krav Magra." Talking about Rick's "new wife" Fraser said "I don't want to give the joke away but I can promise you a brand new Evie."

- Some photos from the Montreal filming:


1. Producer Bob Ducsay (left) and director Rob Cohen on the set of an underground chamber
2. Jet Li's Emperor in the chamber
3. a view of the Montreal filming set
(click to enlarge. photos from "NST", "3M" and jetli.com)
(01/13/08) More shots from the Xingjiang shooting, November 22 - 23. In the first two photos we can see the head eunuch Li Zhou (in black), Ming Guo (double) and Zi Yuan (double). (click to enlarge. "Tianshan net" photos)


(01/07/08) The official blog has a new update with the video: A Fireworks Wrap

(01/04/08) I've got a Chinese translation of the M3 script which version is dated July 3, 2007. This may or may not be the actual shooting script but it should be quite close to the final one. The production started on July 26 last year in Montreal and wrapped up in China a month ago.

In the script the Emperor became Qin Er Shi, the second as well as the last emperor of the Qin Dynasty. In real Chinese history Qin Er Shi was the 26th son of Qin Shi Huang and a puppet emperor after his father's sudden death. He was under the control of chief eunuch Zhao Gao during his less than three years of rule (210BC - 207BC) before his life and the tyrannical Qin Dynasty were removed. There are different counts for the age when he died, some say in his early 20's and others say he was only 15. In the early version(s) of the M3 scripts the Dragon Emperor was Qin Shi Huang. At some point it became Emperor Han. Apparently they kept changing the identity of the character in order to avoid the Chinese authority's complaints. (see report of July 27) It was not fixed even after the production started. We do not know what identity the Dragon Emperor will take in the final cut. But one thing we can be sure is that the set design for ancient part of the story is from Qin Dynasty.

A large portion of Jet Li's character will require some assistance through special effects, like when the character is covered in clay or takes beast forms, for example.

Since this is an adventure of the O'Connell family, we can expect Michelle wouldn't have the most screen time. We probably will miss her for half of the movie. However, the Zi Yuan character is my favorite from the script. As we already know, she appears in both the ancient period and modern times, in two different character designs. I like seeing Michelle as a symbol of fighting for justice. And I like this theme of the film - that the tyrannical regime must be dissolved, miseries must end, and freedom must be triumphant - something which is only too real for today's China. (Although the production team had been in China for more than two months, many of them may not aware what's really going on in the country. It is hard for foreigners to really know the place where the government carefully hides things from international society and people are afraid of talking about any "sensitive issues"...)

In this version, Zi Yuan's creation of "pools of eternal life" was removed. That's too bad. I really liked that part from the earlier scripts. Hope the production company might consider making a spin-off for the character. With topics on China getting hotter and hotter, they can certainly make interesting movie(s) - with 2000 years of civilization to be covered!

Based on this version of July 3, the library built inside the Shanghai Film Studio should not be the Emperor's library (see report of 11/23/07) but is actually the interior set of the ancient depository of manuscripts (the exterior scenes were filmed in Xinjiang). Also, there is no appearance of Jet Li's character's father (see 07/18/07) [minor spoiler warnings til end of the paragraph] but there will be a short scene of Anthony Wong's character's father. Michelle will have a fight with Anthony Wong. Jessey Meng's character will have some fights as well. Some of you may have read some early versions of the script or "ISEB"'s story sketch based on the version dated March 19. Here are a few obvious changes:
1. the India or Hamunaptra scenes were deleted and they added London scenes (filmed in Canada)
2. no back story on Alex
3. no flashback on how the pools of eternal life were created
4. Lin has a better and bigger reason to become mortal
5. Jonathan Carnahan gives out where the next possible Mummy story will take place

I've also seen a detailed story summary (in Chinese) which is slightly different from the script mentioned above. It's not dated but should be based on a version later than March 2007.

(01/01/08) HAPPY NEW YEAR everyone!

Here we have some more photos from the M3 production. The first one is an official release, perhaps shot in Montreal.

O'Connell family	IMHOTEPS night club (Shanghai). Vic Armstrong (L2), his wife Wendy, John Hannah (R2), Liam Cunningham (R1)			filming at the Nanjing Road set, Shanghai

on the Han Street set, Hengdian World Studios (click to enlarge. photos from "Filmz", Vic Armstrong's blog, "Shaoxing Evening" and Chinese BBS)

(12/28/07) Taiwanese model Jessey Meng said her role in The Mummy 3 is as an adjutant in General Yang (Anthony Wong)'s army. She said initially she rejected Rob Cohen's invitation since her role in the script was very small. It required her to be on set for two months but she would only have about 5 minutes of screen time. Later the director talked to her through phone calls and e-mails, and convinced her to join the production. He even added several scenes for Meng including a relationship of some kind with Anthony Wong.

(12/23/07) HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
"Wow!... a visit to a magical Shangri-la!" - Performing Arts Insider
    For anyone who is interested in traditional Chinese culture, I highly recommend the upcoming Holiday Wonders and Chinese New Year Spectacular. Featuring traditional dance, music, song, martial arts, mini-dramas, etc., it's a showcase of China's rich cultural past. The global tour will be in more than 65 cities around the US, Canada, Europe, Asia and Australia. Don't miss the world's largest Chinese New Year live-stage celebration! Let the show take you back 5000 years into ancient China in two of the most memorable hours of your life. Visit www.BestChineseShows.com for information on the show & ticketing.

(12/17/07) "PopPhoto" has an interview with Jasin Boland, the still photographer for The Mummy 3. He mentioned some of his M3 experience, including creating some shots trying to pick up the flash from a gun. He went out with Brendan Fraser, a few weapons, 250 rounds of ammunition, and a couple of Nikons. "The images are so cool, and closer to the release of the film, you should see those shots everywhere." He also talked about how relieved he was once he was able to retrieve a series of files from a card error. "The shots were a series of specials on Michelle Yeoh and to lose them would have been devastating and the studio would have gone nuts," said Boland.

(12/09/07) "Michelle Yeoh should be made Queen of the World. If so, I would be a monarchist. What an elegant woman! She is a light being. She glows from within, even in sunlight." - from Director Rob Cohen's Mummy Blog (updates on December 8). Visit the blog for more.

(12/05/07) Video clips:
    - Mummy 3 press conference in Shanghai, Nov. 26 (17:48, in Mandarin and English)
    - Michelle Yeoh a