MGM has announced that FREE FIRE and SIGHTSEERS director Ben Wheatley has been tapped to direct a sequel to 2018's TOMB RAIDER starring Alicia Vikander in the title role. Vikander will be reprising her role as Lara Croft for the sequel, one of pop culture's most beloved explorers and hunter of all things shiny and supernatural. Writing the script this time out is Amy Jump (HIGH-RISE, FREE FIRE). Meanwhile, Graham King will produce through his GK Films studio with Elizabeth Cantillon.
The Tomb Raider property was rebooted in 2018 by director Roar Uthaug. The exploratory action film unearthed $275 million at the global box office and served as an origin story for the Lara Croft character. In the film, Lara Croft, the fiercely independent daughter of a missing adventurer, pushed herself beyond her limits while searching for the island where her father disappeared.
Where do you think Wheatley's film will find Lara venturing off to for her next death-defying excursion? Do you think having Jump on scripting duties will take the character in a more action-heavy direction? When Vikander was gearing up for 2018's TOMB RAIDER, did you happen to catch any video of her training routine? If you ask me, that woman went into pure BEAST MODE for her TOMB RAIDER training, and I have no doubt that she'll be doing it again for the sequel. I tried a few exercises from her routine once and nearly killed myself. I do not recommend making an attempt to replicate her sweet moves without a proper warm-up or a certified personal trainer. After all, you want to be able to walk into the theater when then next TOMB RAIDER film comes out, right? Play it smart, my friends.
Ben Wheatley's TOMB RAIDER sequel has set a release date of March 19, 2020.