Generally understood as one of the oldest tropes in the horror film and literature canon, narratives about mummies remain a popular motif among film, novel, and television audiences. In part, this fascination may be attributed to the figure of the mummy as representing a universal and enduring fear of, and fixation with, death and the afterlife. As with vampire films, which hold a similar fascination with audiences and for similar reasons, attraction, love, and sexuality are also frequently wrapped up within the narrative arc of mummy themed films. Unlike vampire narratives however, the legacy of the mummy as it relates to Ancient Egypt and its pantheon of gods provides an intricate framework for examining the intersection  between romance, spirituality, and death.

The Mummy (1999) has become a cult classic and valuable addition to the legacy of the mummy genre more broadly. This chapter examines the themes of spirituality, death, and rebirth through the romantic relationship of Rick O’Connell and Evelyn Carnahan, which is viewed in parallel to the romance between Imhotep (the mummy) and his forbidden lover, Anck-su-namun. While the religious beliefs of Ancient Egypt which are touched upon in the film will be a focal point of the analysis, so too will I consider the way that Egyptian belief systems are framed and understood within the context of the time that film is set (1926) and how the romanticisation and nostalgia of that period play an equally vital role in how spirituality, romance, and rebirth are depicted and the reception of modern audiences to these themes.

In the case of both couples, and as the first two films in the franchise demonstrate, love is deeply interwoven with spirituality (including magic) and a central component in the capacity for rebirth. Examining how these differing aspects of the spiritual and, indeed love, are depicted and how they align with the protagonist/antagonist positioning of the two main romantic partnerships is a subject that is worthy of deeper consideration.