Tomb Raider star Alicia Vikander was far from happy when the sequel was canceled. The 2018 film was an adaptation of the Tomb Raider video game, coming after the earlier adaptation Lara Croft: Tomb Raider from 2001. Tomb Raider follows Lara’s journey to find her father while exploring locations filled with ancient artifacts. While Tomb Raider secured $274 million at the box office, it never earned enough for MGM to feel completely comfortable with a sequel.

In an interview with Variety, Vikander explained that she was profoundly upset after MGM failed to green light Tomb Raider 2 in time to retain the rights. Check out her quote below:

“I mean, I thought we were very much [good to go]; we had a director and writer. But yeah, for me, that was another one of those childhood dreams — to portray an action character was awesome, and beyond what I ever thought I would do. And I think the physical part is something that I really enjoyed. So, yeah, if another opportunity like that came again, I’ll be interested.”

Unfortunately for Vikander, she never had the chance to return to the role, and the rights are now firmly with Amazon. While Vikander could very well return in a cameo role, it’s unlikely that she will have the opportunity to reappear to Tomb Raider — at least as the legendary Lara Croft.

What’s Next For The Tomb Raider Franchise?

Though Vikander may be disappointed, the end of the 2018 Tomb Raider franchise doesn’t mean the end to adaptations of the games. Amazon is planning a new Tomb Raider movie, which should be the start of a shared universe. The movie will be joined by a Tomb Raider show and a tie-in video game, designed to widen the world and Lara’s horizons.

It is admittedly a somewhat confusing prospect to create a shared universe around Tomb Raider. Unlike the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which has a large cast of characters to tie new projects around, Tomb Raider tends to revolve around little more than Lara Croft. The projects could also be limited by the availability of Lara’s actor, since she will only have so much time to devote to filming.

Still, it isn’t worth completely rejecting the idea of Tomb Raider‘s shared universe. Amazon clearly believes they have something worth investing in, and a franchise as successful as the Tomb Raider games deserves some extra attention. If Amazon’s universe can provide an avenue to tell more stories, there’s no reason not to. It is unfortunate that Vikander probably won’t have the chance to reprise her role as Lara, but there is still the potential that Tomb Raider could be in good hands.

Source: Variety