Warner Bros. reboots "Tomb Raider" franchise

Jan 29, 2009 15:50 GMT  ·  By
Lara Croft will come to the silver screen again, in third “Tomb Raider” movie
   Lara Croft will come to the silver screen again, in third “Tomb Raider” movie

Just the other day, reports came in saying that Warner was considering casting “Transformers” star Megan Fox as Lara Croft in a third “Tomb Raider” movie. While at the time, not much of said sequel was known, it was believed that Fox would be the best replacement for Angelina Jolie. The HollywoodReporter is now confirming that, indeed, a third installment of “Tomb Raider” is in the works as we speak.

“Warner Bros. and producer Dan Lin are in early development on a reboot of ‘Tomb Raider,’ the popular video game action franchise. Paramount previously made the two movies based on the game, but the rights have since reverted to Eidos. When Time Warner upped its stake to 19.92% in Eidos in December, films rights to the property were included as part of the deal.” The HollywoodReporter says in its latest issue. Now that the rights belong to Warner, work on the sequel has already started.

Nevertheless, according to the same source, the third installment will be different from the previous two movies, since it won’t be a sequel per se, but more of a “reboot.” “The new project, however, is expected to revamp the character and her mission and bear little resemblance to the original pictures. It will reimagine the origins of the character, her love interest and the main villain. As an open-writing assignment, the project is still in its nascent stages.” the same publication reveals.

As for the rumor that Megan Fox would fill in for Lara Croft, this is an aspect that will be settled later on, once a writer and a director are attached to the film, the publication says. This would come to contradict earlier rumors, which had it that Fox was “a strong candidate” for the part, with producers wanting her both because she had all the right physical attributes to play the beautiful but dangerous Lara, and because she had already proven her worth in action movies, having starred in the adrenaline-packed “Transformers.”

“Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen,” the second film in the series, hits theaters in June 2009. In the meanwhile, keep an eye on this space for more “Tomb Raider” details.