With her legendary skill set and that seemingly insatiable taste for adventure, Lara Croft ranks among the best video game characters in history. Since her debut in ’96, the pixelated heroine has inspired countless titles and two full-blown feature films, both of which were headed up by Angelina Jolie.
But now, it’s time for a new Tomb Raider to enter the fold. Alicia Vikander, star of The Danish Girl and Ex Machina, takes point as Miss Croft, who embarks on a journey to find her missing father – or what’s left of him. It’s a quest that leads our titular character all the way to a far-flung island off the coast of Japan, and we imagine it’s here where Warner’s Tomb Raider movie will most resemble the rebooted video game franchise on which it is based.
Developed by Crystal Dynamics, the recent Tomb Raider games have married the fantastical with a grounded, genuinely engaging origin story, though it’s unclear as yet whether fans will be experiencing a mild case of déjà vu come 2018 – for what it’s worth, the nefarious organization known as Trinity is name-dropped in today’s footage. One way or another, and on the heels of yesterday’s action-packed teaser, the first trailer for Warner’s reboot has now clawed its way online. And it’s a doozy.
From a humble college student struggling to make ends meet in London to a budding raider of tombs, this is a tantalizing peek at what’s to come. Directed by Roar Uthaug, this new cinematic take on the legendary archaeologist is clearly gunning for the same ‘wow factor’ that coursed through the veins of Crystal’s recent reboot, but the real test will come in March when Tomb Raider will confront the worst hex of all: the curse of the video game movie.
Here’s the official synopsis:
Lara Croft is the fiercely independent daughter of an eccentric adventurer who vanished when she was scarcely a teen. Now a young woman of 21 without any real focus or purpose, Lara navigates the chaotic streets of trendy East London as a bike courier, barely making the rent, and takes college courses, rarely making it to class. Determined to forge her own path, she refuses to take the reins of her father’s global empire just as staunchly as she rejects the idea that he’s truly gone. Advised to face the facts and move forward after seven years without him, even Lara can’t understand what drives her to finally solve the puzzle of his mysterious death.
Tomb Raider will make a beeline for theaters on March 16th, 2018. Dominic West, Walton Goggins, Daniel Wu, Rowan Polonski, and Hannah John-Kamen (Ant-Man and the Wasp) are among those who co-star, with the latter assuming the part of Lara’s college roommate, Sophie.
