Hundreds of fans descend on The Mummy premiere to catch a glimpse of Tom Cruise

HUNDREDS of fans have descended on the Australian premiere of zombie-thriller The Mummy to catch a glimpse of bona fide movie star Tom Cruise.

Tom Cruise meeting fans at the Australian premiere of The Mummy at The State Theatre, Sydney. Picture: Jonathan Ng

HUNDREDS of fans have descended on the Australian premiere of new zombie thriller The Mummy to try and catch a glimpse of superstar Tom Cruise.

The area surrounding Sydney’s State Theatre became a hotbed of screaming punters last night as the cast of the blockbuster - including Cruise, Russell Crowe, Annabelle Wallis and Sofia Boutella - walked the black carpet.

The stars were generous with their time, stopping for selfies and signing autographs for countless fans before heading inside for a pre-screening Q&A with Channel Nine’s Richard Wilkins and Sonia Kruger.

Tom Cruise mingled with fans for hours. Picture: Christian Gilles

He happily posed for selfies. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)

It was a sea of phones. Picture: Jonathan Ng

The Mummy is to be the first in a series of films set in Universal’s monster’s universe, which will interconnect the stories of familiar freaks such as the Invisible Man, Frankenstein, Count Dracula and Wolf Man for the first time.

Crowe plays Dr Jekyll/Mr Hyde in the reboot, set in the present day and travelling from the sweeping sands of the Middle East through hidden labyrinths under modern-day London, while Cruise’s character plays soldier of fortune Nick Morton, who dies in a plane crash only to arise again to battle an undead ancient Egyptian princess.

Cruise, 54, is currently in Australia in the midst of a whirlwind two-day promo blitz for the rebooted franchise, looking remarkably fresh-faced and youthful.

He is somehow ageing backwards. Photo: EPA/Andy Rain

He reportedly flew in on his private jet on Monday morning ahead of last night’s premiere, and has booked interviews with The Project, Sunrise and Hamish and Andy before his scheduled departure on Tuesday night.

The Mummy opens in Australian cinemas on June 8.

Originally published as Hundreds of fans descend on The Mummy premiere to catch a glimpse of Tom Cruise