What’s going on with Tomb Raider 2?

Plenty of big movies fell foul of the pandemic, with some delayed and others seemingly drifting off into the abyss.

The world of cinema seems rich with big releases that have kept movie buffs waiting. The new James Bond movie has finally been released, which gave the cinema industry a shot in the arm. The long-awaited Dune movie recently ousted 007 from his position at the top of the movie charts as film fans finally returned to their seats, popcorn in hand. However, one iconic star they cannot see on the big screen any time soon is Lara Croft.

It seems a long while since we were first wowed with Alicia Vikander’s re-imagined Croft. An awful lot has happened since the March 2108 release, and if all had gone to plan, we’d already have the second instalment. It was originally due in March 2021, directed by Ben Wheatley (Kill List, Sightseers). Filming was scheduled to start in England in March 2020, which was, unfortunately, the month pandemic restrictions hit.

Wheatley has since left the project, replaced by Misha Green in her film directorial debut. She confirmed earlier this year that the first draft of the script had been written, with the working title Tomb Raider: Obsidian. That was in May, and her social media post also said there was a “long journey” to production.

The star of the film, Vikander, is also still on board but has confirmed the project may take time. When asked by Collider if the movie was definitely happening, she replied: “Pre-COVID, I would’ve said yes. And now I think it’s a yes still. It’s not green-lit, but the script is in the making, and I think everyone is excited and I would love to revisit Lara again. Well, it’s very recent. It’s really now when the world is up and running again [that the script is being written], and Misha is onboard and she’s working on the script right now. So I’m very excited to sort of read something very soon.”

Vikander’s first appearance as Lara film grossed $275m at the box office, the same as the 2001 original starring Angelina Jolie. The character of Lara Croft is a female icon and a video game legend, which gives them joint appeal across two demographics: women and video gamers. Such was the impact of the 1996 game; Foxy Games outline that the game is often praised for pioneering female characters in video games. There have been many since, but Lara was the first, and the PlayStation One release is still heralded as a seminal moment in video game history. That means her appearance in modern cinema is not just about a female action film lead but carries on a legacy 25 years in the making.

Sadly, for now at least, Lara Croft fans will have to wait to see her once again on the big screen. Venture Beat laments that there are no new blockbuster console titles to feature the character planned, which means fans will simply have to revisit old games and films for their Lara fix.

Hopefully, with Misha Green finishing the script, Tomb Raider fans can get some positive news soon, and who knows, maybe we’ll be discussing something other than the next James Bond come the start of 2022.

The editorial unit