The Tomb Raider franchise is set to be expanded in a major way, with Amazon leading plans for a new TV series adaptation. According to The Hollywood Reporter, writer Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Fleabag, No Time to Die) will tackle the Lara Croft story, with this series being the third live-action interpretation of the heroine’s journey.
The news effectively confirms that the Alicia Vikander-starring film franchise version of Tomb Raider will end, despite hopes for a second film.
In addition to a new TV series, Amazon is also reportedly looking to develop other films and video games within a newly-formed Tomb Raider ‘connected world’, inspired by the success of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Notably, Amazon Games is the publisher for the next two Tomb Raider games, and these are currently in development. It could be that plans for the interconnected Croft universe have already begun – and that developer Crystal Dynamics is working on the first major instalment of the modern franchise.
Read: Next Tomb Raider game will be published by Amazon
We know the next game will be a sequel, and that it will utilise Unreal Engine 5 for more realistic graphics – but beyond deep ambitions, we don’t know much about what the next chapter of Tomb Raider looks like.
For now, it’s also unclear how Amazon will work towards connecting a multi-media universe that includes the upcoming Lara Croft-starring video games, but we’ll likely learn more as work progresses. Currently, Waller-Bridge’s TV series is in the early planning stages, with scripts set to be penned shortly.
The new face Lara Croft is yet to be chosen, although it is confirmed that Waller-Bridge will not be playing the role herself, despite her tenure and talent. We’ll learn more about plans for the future of the Tomb Raider franchise, and its many planned spin-offs, in the coming months.
