Bad news for those waiting for the follow-up to 2018’s Tomb Raider film. Not only has MGM lost the film rights, but star Alicia Vikander, who played Lara Croft in the 2018 film, is no longer attached to the project.
Per a report by The Wrap, MGM had until May of this year to get a Tomb Raider sequel off the ground, and that obviously never happened. As a result, the film rights have now reverted back to video game series developer Crystal Dynamics, with the rights reportedly now in the midst of a bidding war between several studios.
The planned sequel was to be directed by “Lovecraft Country” director and producer Misha Green, and was intended to be her feature directorial debut. As it stands, the project now is intended to be a complete reboot, with no director or stars currently attached.
2018’s Tomb Raider earned nearly $275 million at the global box office against a reported $160 budget.
Back in May, previous owner Square Enix agreed to sell Crystal Dynamics to Swedish company Embracer Group for $300 million. Currently, Crystal Dynamics is working on the next Tomb Raider entry using the Unreal Engine 5.