Summary
A newTomb Raideranimated series was recently released on Netflix featuring a new actress bringing Lara Croft to life. Hayley Atwell lends her voice talents to the iconic video game heroine inTomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft, and the actress has opened up about her future with the franchise.
Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croftis set after the events of Crystal Dynamics' popularSurvivortrilogy ofTomb Raidergames, which included the 2013 reboot as well asRise of the Tomb RaiderandShadow of the Tomb Raider.Marvel Cinematic Universe star Hayley Atwell joins several talented actresses who haveplayed Lara Croft over the years, including Camilla Luddington, Angelina Jolie, Alicia Vikander, and Keeley Hawes.
All episodes of Season 1 ofTomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croftdropped on Netflix on June 15, 2025, but future seasons of the series remain unconfirmed at this time. However, it seems that Atwell is eager to continue her role as Lara Croft. Speaking toGamesRader+ in an interview, Atwell said she hopes “To continue to be involved or to be involved in another way with [Lara Croft],” adding it “would be an absolute dream and also a responsibility I would take seriously given how beloved and known she is.” The actress reflected positively on her time working onTomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croftand praised the Netflix series for its “elevated animation” and its focus on digging into the emotional side of Lara Croft.
I just had an absolute blast doing this with this creative team. I’ve loved working with [director Meredith Layne] and [showrunner Tasha Huo] on this, and having Netflix behind it. It feels like an elevated animation [and] that they really want[ed] to get it right emotionally. I would be completely honored to carry on in some way, or to have Lara in my life in a different capacity, for sure.
While Atwell’s most likely future as the tomb raider would be in future seasons of the Netflix animated series, she was also open to other avenues of playing Lara. “I would be completely honored to carry on in some way, or to have Lara in my life in a different capacity, for sure,” she said.
After a period of some inactivity, theTomb Raiderfranchise is expanding at a rapid pace at the moment. Crystal Dynamics has confirmed a newTomb Raidergame is in development and alive-action TV series about Tomb Raideris currently being worked on for Amazon Prime Video by Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Casting has not been confirmed for either project, so there’s room for Atwell to reprise her role as Lara Croft in either project, depending on what direction the developers choose to go in.
Part of the intention of the new Netflix animated series was to helpclean up the disparate timelines of the Tomb Raider franchise. If this continues to be a goal moving forward with the franchise, it might actually make more sense to keep Atwell in the role of Lara Croft to help create a united vision of the character. The actress has proven she has the voice acting talent to continue voicing the character in a game version, and she also has plenty of action experience, having starred in both the MCU andMission: Impossible, should a live-action role come calling. If nothing else,Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croftended its season on a cliffhanger, so Atwell will certainly have a future as the character if the Netflix series is renewed for further seasons.
Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croftis now streaming on Netflix.
Tomb Raider
Tomb Raider is one of the biggest names in action-adventure gaming. The series began in 1996 and has had three trilogies of games: the original trilogy, the legend trilogy, and the survivor trilogy, as well as a handful of other titles in-between.The Tomb Raider series is led by protagonist Lara Croft, who is considered to be one of the most important female characters in gaming history.
