If you haven’t heard, the very popular Tomb Raider video game franchise is getting a series adaptation on Prime Video. I have been quite a fan of Tomb Raider, but not because of the games. My favorite actress of all time is Angelina Jolie, and who can forget her iteration of the Lara Croft heroine!?
I actually credit her with my coming out process, but I digress. Aside from the great Jolie, Croft has more recently been played on the big screen by Alicia Vikander. Many things still need to be figured out about the TV adaptation, but they now have a very big name joining the writing team.
They have tapped the one and only Megan McDonnell. First, I am very happy to see another woman getting a huge gig. IMDB lists her as a writer, producer, and director. Her main credits are for The Marvels and WandaVision, and she seems to know about this genre, so I think she’ll be a good addition to the team. And I do think that a woman’s take will be very critical. The Lara Croft character is such a strong woman lead that she deserves a woman’s touch.
I also think a series will be able to involve more character development than a feature film would. Having someone with her experience and that of being a woman is going to help give Lara Croft’s character more layers and important storylines, at least in my opinion.
Not much else has been said about this series adaptation. Yahoo! Entertainment seems to think that McDonnell’s hiring is a good sign, showing that Prime is really investing into moving this show forward. I think with the writers’ and actors’ strikes having gone on for so long, many projects were stuck in limbo. Hopefully adding more behind-the-scenes people will help them find an actress to take on the main role as Lara Croft herself.
I think no one can be better than Angelina Jolie, but of course I am biased. Also at the helm is the creator of the very popular and critically acclaimed Fleabag, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, another woman who I think will provide a great touch. I have never personally seen Fleabag, but I follow both movies and television shows and the conversation around them, and I know that critics seem to like it a lot.
I think the Tomb Raider series deserves to have a successful run. I hope, with this new addition, we will soon have a date to look forward to where we can dive deep into this new world of Lara Croft!
(featured image: Square Enix Europe)
