Angelina Jolie Had to Be Convinced to Play Lara Croft in Tomb Raider
Angelina Jolie is busier than ever these days, including her upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe [...]
Angelina Jolie is busier than ever these days, including her upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe debut in Marvel's Eternals, but back in 2001, she was the star of another major franchise when she played the role of Lara Croft in the first Tomb Raider movie. Lara Croft: Tomb Raider was the character's live-action debut, and the film was a hit, spawning a sequel in 2003's Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life. Jolie has of course become a megastar since then, but she will always be synonymous with the part, which is why it was a bit of a surprise that she initially said no to the role because she felt the character didn't suit her.
Jolie tries to do as many of her own stunts as possible, and the same is true of her latest project Those Who Wish Me Dead. In a new interview with Collider, Jolie was asked when she realized there was great value in doing all of that herself, and Jolie credits Tomb Raider.
"When I did Tomb Raider for the first time I had three months. I wasn't sure I wanted to do the movie until they said to me...I said, 'I really didn't feel like that character suited me.' I actually didn't at first want to do it; I said no. But they said you can travel the world and train with the British Military and so I had three months of seeing what I could do," Jolie said. "And I would encourage anybody to do that. Sign up for as much as you can, give yourself a few months, push yourself to the limit and see, 'What can I do?' And you find that there's a lot you didn't know and some crazy, weird things you can do or you're capable of, so I love it."
"And I do think the more we have in film that's visual effects, the more it's important to do your own stunts if you can because I think the audience knows the difference and it just feels real when it is. It makes it more authentic," Jolie said.
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider ended up bringing in $274 million at the box office, and was followed by The Cradle of Life, which brought in $160 million. Since then the franchise has been relaunched with Alicia Vikander in the role, and work is being done on the sequel, which is being written by Misha Green.
What's been your favorite Tomb Raider film and why? Let us know in the comments or as always you can talk all things Tomb Raider with me on Twitter @MattAguilarCB!
