A lot is happening with the Aubrey Plaza wants to play Lara Croft. While Plaza isn't the first actor that fans would think of to play the treasure hunter, it's certainly an interesting casting choice and one of many, as Redditors have debated which actor working today would make the best Lara Croft.
Given the recent updates with the franchise, any of these choices are possible, and some of them are pretty likely, too. Between the star of some hugely popular Netflix shows, a couple of MCU alums, and a Hollywood icon who has already played Lara before, Reddit s have some great picks.
Alexandra Daddario
Redditor Percy Jackson actor take up the Lara Croft mantle, noting "part of me wants Alexandra Daddario to get the part." The actor has had a successful career regularly appearing on TV and in movies, but she's yet to have a meaty role that she can really sink her teeth into, and Lara Croft could be that role.
Daddario's role in HBO's The White Lotus proved that she's one of this generation's great actors, as she struck a perfect balance between drama and comedy, and she was even nominated for an Emmy for the role. That tightrope walk between comedy and drama is exactly what the Tomb Raider reboot needs, as it has mostly only ever leaned one way or the other in the past.
Florence Pugh
This Reddit thinks the new Marvel alum would make a great Lara, commenting, "I would love to see Florence Pugh as Lara." Unfortunately, the actor might have her hands full playing Yelena Belova in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as she'll undoubtedly be appearing in several Phase 6 projects.
Yelena might also be too similar of a character to Lara, as they're both extremely skilled in combat and are often found fighting armies of mercenaries. However, if Pugh wasn't playing the Marvel character, there's no doubt that she would totally look and act the part raiding tombs. And as Yelena is being set up as the MCU's next big anti-hero, maybe Lara could be just different enough.
Cobie Smulders
Reddit Avengers and other MCU movies. She plays a badass gun-carrying S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who dresses all in black, which might be a little too familiar of Lara Croft.
But given that Hill isn't a main character and Smulders' appearances in the franchise are infrequent, Lara could be the perfect leading role for her, which she has deserved for years now. The actor is great at action, has a commanding screen presence even in small roles, and she proved by playing Robin in How I Met Your Mother for 10 years that she has great comedy timing, too.
Keke Palmer
Redditor Hustlers, and she often steals the show from the leads.
The newly released horror movie she was the best actor in the movie. One of the problems with the previous Tomb Raider movies is that they lacked that kind of energy, and while that's typical of the video games, it's something that dreary-spirited films needed. Palmer could bring her cheerfulness and enthusiastic spirit to the role, and she would totally make the character her own.
Simone Ashley
Sia-alex wants to see Simone Ashley as the new Lara Croft, adding, "Plus, she’s British-Indian, so Lara’s British-ness is still there, and instead of colonial artifact stealing she can be researching and looking for stuff from her own culture!" If Netflix wins the bidding war over the rights to the video game character, it's actually very likely that Ashley could be the next Lara Croft. The streamer and actor seemingly have a great relationship.
Though Ashley hasn't had any major movie roles, she's the most recognizable actor on TV at the minute, as she has a main role in both The Little Mermaid (via The Times), Ashley might be a low-key frontrunner for a Netflix-produced Tomb Raider.
Hailee Steinfeld
Steinfeld often plays characters that are commanding, blunt, and determined, and that's Lara's personality in a nutshell. But the actor is endlessly entertaining, too. However, Steinfeld is another actor already in the MCU, and like Pugh, her character will likely be significant in the Multiverse Saga. But, Steinfeld's portrayal of the archer, Kate Bishop, makes her one of the strongest contenders for the role since she already has the experience to skillfully use the bow and arrow, Lara's signature weapon.
Anya Taylor-Joy
Anya Taylor-Joy's name gets bandied around Hollywood when it comes to every major role. She has several movies scheduled for release, including the star-studded Furiosa. But there's a reason why she's so in demand.
The actor throws herself into every role and has such a distinctive look, too. And The Northman together, the video game adaptation could make for their next bizarre collaboration.
Angelina Jolie
her Tomb Raider movies are criminally underrated.
As legacy sequels are becoming more and more popular, there'd be no better legacy sequel than Tomb Raider 3, which directly follows Lara Croft: Tomb Raider - The Cradle of Life, and it could follow Lara now 20 years older. Today's action movies are led by men pushing 60, whether it's Bob Odenkirk, Keanu Reeves, or Brad Pitt in the newly released Bullet Train, and as Jolie isn't even 50, it isn't remotely hard to imagine her back in the role.
Camilla Luddington
According to the New York Post, movie stars are taking voice actors' work away from them, but Bowlofpast92 thinks it should be the other way around. The Redditor asks, "Why not the actress that did the motion capture for the recent video games? Camilla Luddington?"
As the Redditor points out, Luddington's work on the video games isn't even just voice work, as it's a full motion capture role, and she has fully thrown herself into the role of Lara Croft. Unfortunately, she isn't a bankable star and doesn't come with much recognition, so it's completely unlikely that it'll ever happen, even if she has already proven that she's great in the role.
Aubrey Plaza
The idea of Aubrey Plaza being Lara Croft began with director Edgar Wright believing that she had officially been cast. And now, Flowercarpet takes the idea even further, arguing that not only would Plaza be great, but that Wright should direct the movie, too.
The Redditor explains, "I think she would absolutely nail the balance between toughness and vulnerability of Lara's recent iterations. If Edgar Wright would also direct this movie, then I think this could be the best video game movie of all time." Wright has directed exciting action movies like Emily the Criminal, may just exemplify that.
