Tomb Raider on the big screen is potentially in trouble, with the recent announcement that MGM has lost the film rights to the franchise and the lead to be recast.
With MGM losing the film rights to the iconic video game franchise, the IP is being brought to the auction table, with many of the ‘certainties’ in a potential sequel also potentially vanishing just as the IP vanished from MGM. This includes casting choices such as Alicia Vikander as Lara Croft, and just like the films based on Hannibal replacing Jodie Foster with Julianne Moore, fans of Vikander’s portrayal are bound to be disappointed due to the paradigm shift.
This is notably not the first time the Tomb Raider franchise has recast Lara Croft, as Angelina Jolie initially played the role in the first two films from the early 2000s. With the film rights up in the air, they are set to be auctioned off with the plans to retool the entire franchise, again, as reported by The Wrap. An intense auction will ensue to settle where the film eventually lands.
While the Tomb Raider 2018 film sequel seems to be very much in limbo, it remains to be seen as to whether this shift in rights will do anything to disturb the aforementioned Tomb Raider anime announced by Netflix last year. This, combined with the Embracer group absorbing Crystal Dynamics in their buying spree that included Gearbox in 2021 and Eidos Montreal, means there are a lot of question marks surrounding the iconic and beloved character.
Film critic Boyd Raynolds summed up his review of the 2018 Tomb Raider by saying, “Alicia Vikander makes Tomb Raider worth watching, setting forth an origin story full of classic blockbuster action, adrenaline, and most importantly, fun.”
While no other news nor a response from MGM has been made readily available at this time, fans will have to wait and see regarding any future developments regarding the latest in the Tomb Raider list of films.
