AceShowbiz -

Courtney B. Vance has signed on to star in "The Mummy" reboot, Deadline has learned. The "American Crime Story: The People v O.J. Simpson" star's casting has also been confirmed by Entertainment Weekly, which additionally reports that he is set to play an army colonel in the film.

Vance, who received praises for his role as lawyer Johnnie Cochran on the FX anthology series, is joining the cast that's led by Tom Cruise and includes Sofia Boutella ("Kingsman: The Secret Service"), Annabelle Wallis ("Peaky Blinders") and Jake Johnson ("New Girl").

"The Mummy" reboot will kick off Universal's cinematic universe of horror films based on their iconic classic monsters. Alex Kurtzman will direct based on a screenplay by Jon Spaihts ("Prometheus").

Unlike the previous "Mummy" films starring Brendan Fraser, the new one is set in present day. It will reportedly follow a Navy SEAL who leads his team into the dessert to locate a suspected terrorist and instead finds a group of grave robbers who died under sinister, mysterious circumstances. The flick is slated to arrive in the U.S. on June 9, 2017.