Amazon’s MGM has been struggling to get their Tomb Raider movie off the ground. From being delayed indefinitely to announcing a director (and then nothing else), Lara Croft’s adventures have been halted now that the studio has lost the rights to produce the film franchise.
Currently, there are three Tomb Raider movies, the most recent being the 2018 film starring Alicia Vikander. Now that MGM has lost the rights, the actress is no longer attached to the planned sequel and a new actress is being sought to play the role of Lara Croft.
Angelina Jolie kicked off the film series in 2001 with Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and its sequel Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life. Vikander took on the role in the reboot and grossed US$274.7 million at the worldwide box office. A sequel with the actress set to return had been in the works since 2019 but saw plenty of difficulties, especially with an initial March 2021 release date, right smack in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Producer Graham King, who acquired film rights in 2011, is reportedly shopping rights to the franchise. This means one thing: a bidding war is underway. And we’ll have to wait and see who comes out on top.