Amazon's Tomb Raider series reportedly canceled after 'tens of millions of dollars' spent

The Tomb Raider TV series, in production at Amazon for its Prime Video service that recently found success with another videogame adaptation, Fallout, is reportedly dead. According to the Daily Mail's sources, the Phoebe Waller-Bridge-led series (Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, Fleabag, Killing Eve) went through two writers' rooms and "tens of millions of dollars in development costs."

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The series would have been a big-budget adaptation of one of the most beloved video game franchises, with filming scheduled to take place this year. Phoebe Waller-Bridge has previously noted that she was a big fan of the games growing up. However, the Daily Mail report notes no script for the Lara Croft series had been produced. Regarding someone taking on the iconic role, Game Of Thrones star Sophie Turner (Sansa Stark) was reportedly set to star.

Interestingly, the report also notes that Jennifer Salk, the former head of Amazon Studios who was let go last week, green-lit the project.

She also signed Waller-Bridge to a $20-million-a-year contract in 2019 following the success of the series Fleabag, which has earned the star close to $100 million - with very little to show for it. Amazon has yet to confirm that the Tomb Raider series is no longer happening, so this is still a rumor. However, after the success of The Last of Us on HBO, Fallout on Prime Video, and the recent Minecraft movie, it shows you that a successful videogame adaptation is not a sure bet.

Amazon also partnered with veteran development studio Crystal Dynamics (the creators behind the modern Tomb Raider games), which is working on the next game in the series. It's being developed using the latest Unreal Engine 5 technology. It is said to focus on the same action, adventure, and puzzle-solving gameplay that has been a hallmark of the series for decades.