British auteur director Ben Wheatley will direct Tomb Raider 2, starring Alicia Vikander, it’s been confirmed.
After a bit of umming and aahing, MGM has decided to movie ahead with a new Tomb Raider movie, with Alicia Vikander in the role of Lara Croft, and slated its release for 2021.
It follows the slightly underwhelming $275m worldwide gross of last year’s reboot movie, that left a decision to be made over whether a sequel was worth pursuing. And it turns out that all concerned think that it is. Vikander – the absolute highlight of the first movie – will thus be returning.
Director Roar Uthaug won’t be, though. Instead, the director’s chair has gone to the terrific Ben Wheatley, who is just in post-production at the minute on his Netflix-backed take on Rebecca.
UPDATE: We also learn that Amy Jump (screenwriter) and Laurie Rose (cinematographer), both regular collaborators, will be joining Ben Wheatley on the Tomb Raider sequel. Jump had joined the project before Wheatley, to clarify.
Wheatley may be best known for his low budget British successes, but he’s been trying to get more expensive films off the ground too. Furthermore, don’t discount his impressive pair of Doctor Who episodes either, that were hardly shy on effects work.
It’s an intriguing choice, then, and work will get underway in earnest soon. A release date has been announced for the film of March 19th 2021, and we’ll have more on the movie as we hear it.
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