Ever since the first Tomb Raider game released back in 1996, the franchise has been a pop culture staple. The basic premise of Lara Croft going out on adventures easily lends itself to a long-running video game series that’s seen numerous titles released across multiple console generations. That concept also made it easy for Lara to jump across different mediums. Multiple Tomb Raider films have been produced, but now Lara is looking to make a splash on the small screen. For a while, Game of Thrones star Sophie Turner has been attached to headline a series for Amazon, and now that project has taken a major step forward.
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According to Deadline, the Tomb Raider TV show is planning to start production in January 2026. No release window has been set as of this writing. Phoebe Waller-Bridge is still involved, serving as creator, writer, and executive producer. Joining her behind the scenes is Chad Hodge, who will be co-showrunner and executive producer. Jonathan Van Tulleken is onboard as an executive producer and director.
Amazon’s Tomb Raider Series Is Coming Out at the Perfect Time
For years, comparisons have been made between Tomb Raider and similar action-adventure properties such as Indiana Jones and Uncharted (the first Uncharted game was mockingly referred to as “Dude Raider”). While both of those franchises remain popular, the odds of getting new big-screen installments any time soon in either are low. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny bombed at the box office in 2023, and Lucasfilm is prioritizing new Star Wars features instead. The Uncharted movie starring Tom Holland grossed $407.1 million worldwide, but development on a sequel has been slow. Only last year did Mark Wahlberg reveal an Uncharted 2 movie script exists.
Currently, there’s a void in the marketplace for a title in this vein. The Tomb Raider series can help fill that void, delivering pulpy action-adventure stories and genre thrills with a fan-favorite character front and center. Amazon has established itself as a go-to platform for action fare; several of the streamer’s shows, such as The Terminal List: Dark Wolf and Butterfly, dominated Prime Video’s charts. Amazon seems like the ideal place for a show like Tomb Raider to take off since its audience loves action titles.
Ideally, Tomb Raider will even earn a stronger critical reception when compared to Prime’s other action shows. Waller-Bridge is one of her era’s sharpest talents, creating the acclaimed series Fleabag. That was a dark comedy, but it displayed a strong sense of creativity and inventiveness that could benefit any project. Waller-Bridge has a keen understanding of crafting compelling characters audiences can get invested in. She also co-starred alongside Harrison Ford in Dial of Destiny, so she has experience with treasure-hunting stories. She can take the lessons learned from that movie and apply them to Tomb Raider.
None of the Tomb Raider movies were critical darlings; the franchise’s highest Rotten Tomatoes score is 52% for the 2018 reboot starring Alicia Vikander (that film never received a sequel). Television could prove to be a stronger medium for adapting a game franchise, however. Yes, Tomb Raider is inherently cinematic because it takes cues from Indiana Jones, but video games are long-form narratives. As a TV show, Amazon’s Tomb Raider will have more screen time to flesh out its characters, world, and plot in fascinating ways. Hopefully, it will follow the footsteps of Fallout and be another great game adaptation for Prime.
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