Sophie Turner, acclaimed for her role in Game of Thrones, has been officially confirmed by Amazon MGM Studios to portray Lara Croft in the highly anticipated Tomb Raider TV series. This announcement puts to rest earlier reports that suggested Turner had exited the project and that the show itself was no longer moving forward.
Multiple industry sources, including Variety, have corroborated the news, confirming that the Tomb Raider series is indeed on track. Amazon MGM Studios also revealed that principal photography is scheduled to commence in January 2026.
As previously announced, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, the creative force behind Fleabag, serves as the series` creator, writer, and executive producer. She is joined by Chad Hodge (Single All the Way, Wayward Pines) as co-showrunner and executive producer, with Shogun director Jonathan van Tulleken also on board as an executive producer and director.
In a statement, Waller-Bridge shared her excitement for the project: “Everyone on board is wildly passionate about Lara and are all as outrageous, brave, and hilarious as she is. Get your artifacts out… Croft is coming…”
Turner steps into significant shoes, following in the footsteps of Angelina Jolie and Alicia Vikander, who both famously brought Lara Croft to life on the big screen. Expressing her enthusiasm, Turner stated she is “thrilled beyond measure” to take on the iconic role.
Acknowledging the legacy, Turner added, “They`re massive shoes to fill, following in the steps of Angelina and Alicia with their powerhouse performances, but with Phoebe at the helm, we (and Lara) are all in very safe hands. I can`t wait for you all to see what we have cooking.”
The Tomb Raider series, destined for Prime Video, was initially greenlit under the leadership of Jennifer Salke, then head of Amazon MGM Studios. Salke, who was reportedly personally overseeing the series, departed the company earlier this year amid reports of an internal power struggle.
A March report by Matthew Belloni of Puck indicated that the Tomb Raider series underwent numerous writers` room sessions, accumulating “tens of millions” in development costs.
In addition to the television adaptation, Amazon is also set to publish the next Tomb Raider video game, developed by Crystal Dynamics. This studio recently experienced layoffs following the cancellation of Perfect Dark, though they confirmed at the time that the Tomb Raider game project remained unaffected. It has been stated that this new game is not expected to be narratively connected to the upcoming television series.