If there's one movie genre that is still waiting for its first wild success, its video game adaptations. Movies based off of popular gaming franchise have done historically terrible, from 1993's Super Mario Brothers to the recent attempt at an Assassin's Creed film. Warner Bros. is trying to change this with Tomb Raider, based off of the video game series of the same name. The new blockbuster will be more in line with the newest games, and looks wholly different from the previous franchise led by Angelina Jolie. Many fans were hoping Jolie might pop up in a cameo, although sadly it didn't come to fruition. CinemaBlend's Conner Schwerdtfeger recently spoke to producer Graham King, who revealed why Angelina didn't have a role in Tomb Raider. He said,
It was never a story that had that moment where you could, you know what I mean? Pass the baton over. There wasn't that kind of tone and that would've changed tones to have that... the studios of course, said 'is there a way to get Angie? Should we try and have her kind of baton over this kind of thing?' And I understand it for marketing and studios or whatever, but that never felt organic to our film. Something like that can tip the balance.
It looks like there just wasn't an organic way to work Angelina Jolie into the narrative of Tomb Raider. While fans would have loved to see her recognize Alicia Vikander as the new Lara Croft, there wasn't a way to put the Oscar winning actress into the new sequel. Plus, who knows of Angelina would even want to appear? After all, she famously departed the franchise after the less than stellar outing of Lara Croft: Tomb Raider - The Cradle of Life.
Perhaps the most obvious choice for a possible role for Angelina Jolie would be to play Ana Miller, who is one of Lara's father's associates. Played in the new film by British actress Dame Kristin Scott Thomas, Ana has a throughline in the plot that also may have implications for a possible sequel. This might have been a possible role for Jolie (if she wanted it), although they went with a more appropriate choice with Thomas.
While some fans may have hoped for Angelina Jolie joining Tomb Raider and meeting the new Lara Croft, the two franchises couldn't be more different. The new movie is far more gritty and real than the previous two films, which had ample camp and gunfights. It was based off of the most recent Tomb Raider game franchise, which puts an emphasis on Lara's survival skills in the wild, and abilities with a bow and arrow.
Tomb Raider is in theaters now. In the meantime, check out our 2018 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.
