Earlier this month,Tomb RaiderstarWalton Gogginssent out a photo of theTomb Raiderscreenplay, teasing that shooting would start soon. That fell in line with a previous report from December, claiming production would begin in January. Although we still don’t have word about any other cast members coming aboard, aside fromAlicia Vikanderas Lara Croft andWalton Gogginsas the villain, today we have word from directorRoar Uthaugthat filming has in fact started. The filmmaker even shared the first photo from the set.
This first look image doesn’t feature Vikander or Goggins. The director shared the photo onInstagram, which features the very first film slate used as production gets under way. While it was never specified where filming will take place,Walton Gogginssent out a number of photos through his Instagram last week, revealing that he has been in Cape Town, South Africa. Although none of his photos were taken from the set. He did state last week in that he would “get to theTomb Raidingsoon,” while sharing a photo of the same fedora hat that was seen inWalton Goggins' script photo from earlier this month.
GivenWalton Goggins' presence on Instagram, it’s entirely possible that the actor could share a number of images from the set as production continues. MGM and GK Films have not yet released an official synopsis, but producerGraham Kingdid reveal in November that the story will followLara Croftsearching for her long-lost father, in what the producer described as a “back to the roots story.” DirectorRoar Uthaughas also previously confirmed that the story is based on the 2013 video game reboot, and not the original game.
The firstTomb Raider movie,Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, was released in 2001 and starredAngelina Joliein the lead role. It also had a portion of the plot centered on her father, with Jolie younger than Vikander in real life at the time. That movie currently is the top-grossing video game movie at the domestic box office with $131.1 million, and a worldwide total of $274 million. The 2003 sequelTomb Raider: The Cradle of Lifewasn’t nearly as big of a hit as the first, taking in $65.6 million domestic and only grossing $156 million worldwide. Last year,Warcraftbecame the highest-grossing video game ever at the worldwide box office with $433.6 million, but it flopped at the domestic box office, earning just $47.3 million.
Roar Uthaugdirects from a screenplay byGeneva Robertson-Dworet, who may not be a household name, but has become quite the in-demand writer. She was part of theTransformerswriters room, and she is currently writing the Harley Quinn spinoff movieGotham City Sirensas well as theDungeons & Dragonsreboot andSherlock Holmes 3. MGM has set a July 06, 2025 release date forTomb Raider, which is currently the only movie slated for release on that date. It will fall between Disney’sWreck-It Ralph 2on August 23, 2025 and 20th Century Fox’sAnnubis, Sony’sPeter Rabbitand Lionsgate’sRobin Hoodon August 19, 2025. Take a look at the first set photo fromTomb Raider, courtesy of directorRoar Uthaug’s Instagram, along withWalton Goggins' Instagram photos from Cape Town, South Africa from this past week.
