It seems like MGM has lost one of its golden eggs. The American media company no longer possesses the rights to the Tomb Raider movie franchise. In 2013, the studio struck a deal for the rights. Five years later, the fans got a complete reboot of the franchise that starred Alicia Vikander in the leading role, helmed by Roar Uthaug.
The Wrap first broke this news on the internet. It further revealed that a bidding war for the Tomb Raider movie franchise is underway. Numerous streaming services and studios have shown their interest in purchasing the rights.
MGM’s loss proves that the sequel to Vikander’s first TR movie has been shelved for good. Also, the iconic role of Lara Croft will go to another actress. But do we need another reboot?
The first film adaptation of the Tomb Raider video game series came out in 2001. Angelina Jolie donned the character with perfection. But poor direction and senseless plot resulted in messing up the entire project. Still, it emerged as a box office success, collecting over $274 million globally. However, luck did not favour its sequel, The Cradle of Life (2003). The second entry was considered a minor improvement over its 2001 predecessor but failed to collect good figures. This scenario forced Jolie to leave the franchise.
We all know how good Hollywood studios are when it comes to video game adaptations. Nowadays, people do not take films based on video games seriously at all. And we cannot blame them. Not every reboot yields good results.
Fans of the gaming series love Jolie as Lara Croft to this day. On the other hand, Vikander’s performance drew a highly polarised response from the fanbase. Some of them even pointed out her bland performance in the 2018 film and even called her character a “complete punching bag”.
According to the deal, MGM had to greenlight a sequel before May this year. But the studio failed to do that. Yes, there were talks about a sequel coming out sometime in future with Alicia Vikander returning to portray Croft. They even had Lovecraft County creator Misha Green on board for helming the project. But the studio lost the chance.
The upcoming second reboot can either miraculously save the film franchise or bury it into the ground for good. Let’s face it, guys! Not every second reboot is MCU’s Spider-Man: Homecoming. Whichever studio bags the movie rights has the daunting task of casting the perfect Tomb Raider for the big screen. With Vikander out of the frame, the winning studio must focus on getting an actress who knows how to tackle a tricky character like Lara Croft. Additionally, this franchise badly needs good and steady direction.
Stay tuned to Binged to know more about the second reboot of the Tomb Raider film franchise.
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