Amazon is obviously serious about Lara Croft: game, series and film are to take place in a coherent universe – i.e. like in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Lara Croft is an icon in the video game sector – now she is apparently also to become that in the cinema and on the TV at home. In addition to the new game, a Tomb Raider series is currently being worked on, and according to (The Hollywood Reporter) a film is also to be released. But the three projects will not stand alone, but will all be connected.
If you only find Lara Croft interesting in games, then take a look at our ranking of all Tomb Raider titles – even without Alicia Vikander and Angelina Jolie, I promise!
Will Tomb Raider be the next MCU?
Amazon’s goal is to create a connected world like the Marvel Cinematic Universe. What Disney has been doing for years with great success only works moderately for other projects: the DC Extended Universe around Batman, Superman and Co. doesn’t have a particularly good reputation, while Universal’s Dark Universe died with the first film The Mummy. Tomb Raider would be the first coherent world to combine film, series and video game – the Marvel games have always been created independently of the MCU.
Amazon has probably also put a lot of dough on the table for this, after all, the Tomb Raider world is supposed to be one of the company’s biggest projects since The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.
What do we know about the projects so far?
The Game: In December 2022, Amazon announced the previously unnamed title. The studio behind it is Amazon Games in cooperation with Crystal Dynamics. Thanks to the Unreal Engine 5, the game is to be developed with modern technology. Find out what else we know in the following (Article).
The Series: Emmy-winning actress Phoebe Waller-Bridge is currently said to be writing the script for the live-action series, but does not plan to appear on camera. There’s no word yet on who’s in it, what it’s about or any other information about the project.
The Movie: There’s even less info here – none at all, in fact. The Hollywood Reporter merely reports that a new film (presumably without Alicia Vikander, who last took the role of Lara) is coming and is set in the same universe as the other two projects.
The animated series: Also coming to Netflix is an animated series based on Tomb Raider – but it is said to have nothing to do with the grand plan of a connected universe. The unnamed series is due out later this year.
What do you think of a big Tomb Raider universe? Can’t you get enough Lara Croft or are you critical of Amazon’s plan? And what would you hope for from such a connected world? Feel free to write us in the comments!
