Gamer fandoms can be quite demanding when it comes to live-action remakes, and for good reason: a strong expectation has already been set in-game. In the Tomb Raider community, many agree that Alicia Vikander did a solid job, and Angelina Jolie is undoubtedly a fan favorite. But with Variety‘s recent confirmation that Game of Thrones actress Sophie Turner will be Lara Croft for the new live-action Tomb Raider series scheduled to start production next year, no one is happy.
No One Can Imagine Sophie Turner as Lara Croft
“Looks like they’re trying to be as faithful to the original games. Because Turner’s got the acting range of a 1990s polygon video game character,” reads a highly upvoted Reddit comment. “Terrible casting oh my god,” agreed another. Others mention how Sophie Turner did a bad job in X-Men, so this decision seems like a “HUGE miscast” and is “automatically going to be terrible.” Of course, several were slightly hopeful, with one commenter leading the charge of a handful of upvoters saying that they’d hold off judgment until a trailer comes out. “I won’t,” bluntly responds the top response, pointing out that Turner is a bland actress who doesn’t have what it takes to be a believable action star.
Online users on Facebook shared a similarly negative sentiment towards Sophie Turner as Lara Croft in the upcoming Tomb Raider series. One person says it’s like the producers are trying to get someone like Tom Holland to be James Bond. “Some people just don’t ‘fit’ as a certain character,” they explain. “Least believable and poorest fit Lara Croft yet, 🤦🏻♀️” remarks another. “Well that’s going to bomb calling it 🙌🏻,” predicts a third. “Lara just went from hot to ‘not’,” joked a fourth.
One person butted in, trying to ragebait the crowd, saying that everyone was fine with the multiple Batmans, Supermans, and Spider-Mans we’ve had over the years, but they have issues with Sophie Turner as the 3rd Lara Croft. A few replies point out how they are missing the point that Turner is just not a good fit. For example, even if you love Henry Cavill, it’s tough to imagine him as a decent Spider-Man. Despite the backlash, Turner does appear to be quite eager for the role.
The Dark Phoenix actress told Variety that she’s “thrilled beyond measure” to be such an iconic and beloved video game character, but she does also admit that the role is “massive shoes to fill.” Turner acknowledged that Jolie and Vikander have set the standard, but she claims with confidence that Lara is “in very safe hands.” It’s encouraging to see she’s looking forward to playing the part, with hopes that she has a strong grasp on the source material, of course.
While Tomb Raider fans aren’t looking forward to Turner’s performance, hopefully, she’ll have what it takes to bring their hopes back up when a trailer or teaser rolls around.
