Phoebe Waller-Bridge is developing Tomb Raider for Amazon Prime Video

To update: It’s not just a Tomb Raider series that Amazon is working on. The streamer is eyeing the prize for developing an entire universe of interconnected projects, including a film, a Phoebe Waller-Bridge series and a previously announced video game, all based on video game character Lara Croft, IndieWire has learned.

THR added on Friday after initial reports that a Tomb Raider series was in development, adding that Amazon had struck a deal with Dmitri Johnson’s dj2 Entertainment that would reunite Amazon with Tomb Raider. after MGM previously granted film rights to the video game lapse. Waller-Bridge would not be involved with the game or the film, but the expectation is that a series project could come first, rebooting the franchise and opening the door for other stories to populate the universe.

Johnson’s dj2 Entertainment was behind the anime version of Tomb Raider that’s airing on Netflix and has been working to get the rights in order for some time after the film rights lapsed, with both film rights and rights changing hands to the games in between, waiting for Embracer to complete its takeover of Square Enix’s assets.

Amazon previously declined to comment on the news to IndieWire.

Original story below:

After starring in the upcoming Indiana Jones and the Wheel of Fortune, it looks like Phoebe Waller-Bridge has developed a passion for treasure hunting. Emmy-winning Fleabag is reportedly developing a television series adaptation of the popular Tomb Raider video game series for Amazon, The Hollywood Reporter reported Jan. 27.

The project is part of Waller-Bridge’s overall deal with Amazon, which she renewed earlier this month. The extension also came with news that she was adapting Claudia Lux’s book Sign Here in a series. Waller-Bridge will write the project-in-development but will reportedly not star as armed adventurer Lara Croft. She co-produces with Ryan Andolina and Amanda Greenblatt, former Amazon comedy and drama and general deals heads who founded their own studio but have an overall deal with Prime Video.

Amazon declined to comment on the news to IndieWire.

The Tomb Raider franchise began in 1994 with the original PlayStation action video game from British game studio Core Design. The series stars Croft, an athletic and intelligent British archaeologist who travels the world in search of rare artifacts. In each game, Croft usually embarks on a new treasure hunt, battling rival hunters and enemies along the way. The original game sold over seven million copies, making it one of PlayStation’s best-selling games, and subsequent titles have sold over 95 million combined worldwide. The series has spawned 12 mainline games and several spinoffs to date, with the most recent games being a well-received reboot trilogy helmed by Crystal Dynamics and released between 2013 and 2018.

The Croft character has already made it into live action twice. In 2001 and 2003, Paramount Pictures released Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and its sequel The Cradle of Life, starring Angelina Jolie in the title role. Both films performed well at the box office, but received a mixed critical reception. A reboot closely based on the 2013 trilogy was released by Warner Bros. in 2018, starring Alicia Vikander as Lara, to similarly mixed reviews. A sequel was in development but was canceled in 2022 after MGM’s film rights to the video games expired.

In addition to the upcoming Indiana Jones film, Waller-Bridge will also star in John Krasinski’s 2024 film If. The Fleabag creator was previously involved with the upcoming Mr. & Mrs. Smith” Amazon series with her “Solo” co-star Donald Glover, but reportedly left after creative differences. Waller-Bridge is represented by UTA, Hatton McEwan Penford, Independent Talent Group and Johnson Shapiro.

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