Hayley Atwell Cast As Lara Croft In Netflix's Tomb Raider Anime
The "Tomb Raider" franchise has transformed Lara Croft into one of the most recognizable video game characters of all time. While she's been hunting for treasure and spelunking since the 1990s, she received a reboot in 2013 to make the series more accessible to a new generation of gamers. Rebooting the character hasn't been exclusive to the games, either. While Angelina Jolie portrayed the adventurer in two films, Alicia Vikander suited up to venture into the wilderness in the 2018 movie "Tomb Raider."
Lara Croft has gone through many iterations over the years, and she's about to receive another one — this time in animated form. Netflix announced earlier in 2021 that "Tomb Raider" would officially become an anime with support from Legendary Television. Things have been quiet on the anime front for a while now, but we officially have confirmation of who will lend the voice to the tomb raider herself. It's none other than "Captain America" star Hayley Atwell.
The Tomb Raider anime will be set after the events of the 2018 video game
2021 is an important year for the "Tomb Raider" franchise. It marks 25 years since the first game came out and got countless gamers interested in archaeology. While there's still no release date for the Netflix series, Atwell's involvement, which The Hollywood Reporter first reported, is an intriguing development that's bound to catch the attention of long-time fans.
The "Tomb Raider" games have sold over 81 million copies since the first installment in 1996 (via Deadline). There's plenty for fans to look forward to in the years to come. A sequel to the critically acclaimed 2018 game "Shadow of the Tomb Raider" has had rumors surrounding it since the last game came out and will take place after the events of "Shadow." The rebooted film series should also have a follow-up coming in the near future. Misha Green of "Lovecraft Country" will write and direct the next installment of the big-screen adaptation, which still doesn't have a release date.
For now, keep your eyes and ears peeled for more updates on the "Tomb Raider" anime as they become available. Atwell's on a voice acting hot streak at the moment, having worked on another Netflix animated project — "3Below: Tales of Arcadia" — and as Captain Carter on Marvel's "What If...?" More casting announcements for the show should come shortly.