Following the news that Phoebe Waller-Bridge is developing a Tomb Raider TV series for Amazon Prime Video, the extent of the streaming service's plans for this franchise have been revealed.
The Hollywood Reporter reveals that Amazon has teamed up with Dmitri M. Johnson’s dj2 Entertainment for a massive rights deal that will see them team up to develop the aforementioned TV show, a movie, and at least one video game (announced last December, but thought to be the first of many), all of which will be part of a connected Tomb Raider world.
The plan is to create an MCU-style franchise, and it's clearly a property that Amazon is taking seriously. We're assuming the same actress would play Lara Croft across all three projects, though that TV series may end up being a spin-off based on another character for all we know at this stage.
One source tells the trade that this deal is "among the largest commitments at Amazon after Lord of the Rings." Bear in mind they spent $250 million on the rights to that alone, so Amazon will clearly be taking Tomb Raider seriously after what sounds like another massive financial investment.
Interestingly, while Waller-Bridge is writing the Tomb Raider TV series, she isn't involved with either the movie or video game. The No Time to Die scribe is, however, said to be a big fan of the property and was eager to be part of this untitled show.
If you want an idea of what to expect from this new era of Tomb Raider storytelling, Netflix's anime TV series might be a good place to start. While it was developed by a different creative team, Johnson’s dj2 Entertainment was responsible for putting the deal together for that.
As of right now, there's no word on who will play Lara Croft in this live-action reboot. Vikander starred in that disappointing reboot, following in the footsteps of Angelina Jolie. In the games, Camilla Luddington, Keeley Hawes, and Minnie Driver have all lent their voices to the iconic character, as did Hayley Atwell in an anime series on Netflix.
Hopefully, we'll have more details to share soon!