Oscar-winning actor Alicia Vikander isn’t getting her hopes up about stepping back into the role of Lara Croft anytime soon.
According to Entertainment Weekly, the Swedish star’s reunion with filmmaker Misha Green for a Tomb Raider sequel is in flux due to the sale of MGM to Amazon Studios. Vikander says the future of the project is unclear.
“With the MGM and Amazon buyout, I have no clue. Now it’s kind of politics. I think Misha and I have been ready, so it’s kind of in somebody else’s hands, to be honest. I’ve been excited to show the world. I love what she’s done with Lovecraft Country.”
Green previously wrote the script Tomb Raider (2018) in which Vikander starred. A Tomb Raider sequel was in development in 2019, but hit its first speed bump with the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. There were whispers that the studio wanted to see Angelina Jolie return as Lara Croft but, eventually, Vikander signed on for the project with Green at the helm as writer and director. Green prepared a draft of the screenplay, with the working title Tomb Raider: Obsidian.
It wasn’t the first time Vikander outclassed a favored contender to win a coveted role in the Tomb Raider franchise. She previously beat out Daisy Ridley, who was the hot favorite to play Lara Croft in the reboot.
While the film received lukewarm reviews as adequate but unexceptional, it did well at the box office, opening the door for another installment. Whether Amazon Studios will follow through on completing the project remains to be seen.
Vikander is currently starring in Irma Vep on HBO Max.