Remember when Hollywood heroes were tough, daring, and unapologetically larger than life? Well, it looks like those days are long gone. Prime Video has tapped Game of Thrones actress Sophie Turner to play Lara Croft in a new Tomb Raider series—yes, the same Turner who once said she would never live in America again if Donald Trump were president. Now she’s the face of one of the most iconic female action heroes in gaming. And behind the camera? None other than Phoebe Waller-Bridge, the self-proclaimed feminist writer who helped flatten both Indiana Jones and James Bond.
Turner, who reportedly beat out Emma Mackey (Sex Education) and Lucy Boynton (Barbie) for the starring role, told ScreenRant that she’s been hitting the gym since early 2025. She gushed about her “great relationship” with Amazon, claiming the upcoming production will be “something special.” But is that what anyone actually wants from Tomb Raider—a “special” message show or just a good, old-fashioned adventure?
Let’s not forget, Turner built her fame playing Sansa Stark in Game of Thrones, a role fans loved not because it preached politics but because it told a story that felt real, dangerous, and human. These days, Turner seems more interested in lecturing half her potential audience than entertaining them. At one point, she even took to social media to declare she’d pack up and stay in the U.K. permanently if Trump won again. Is that really the energy Amazon thinks gamers are craving right now?
Then there’s Waller-Bridge—the creative force who critics say hijacked two beloved franchises. Her fingerprints were all over the misfire known as Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, and she helped push a politically sanitized vision onto James Bond, even telling Slate she wanted 007’s scripts to reflect “how women actually feel.” Now she’s running the Tomb Raider show, reportedly promising a more “realistic” Lara Croft and with smaller breasts. In a franchise built around a powerful, confident, and yes, attractive female adventurer, ample apparently now controversial.
To many fans, it feels like yet another attack on anything remotely fun, male-coded, or aesthetically bold. The truth is, most gamers—men and women alike—never asked for this sanitized, committee-approved version of a heroine. But Hollywood keeps insisting the audience is wrong. Why? Money, ideology, or sheer arrogance? Maybe all three.
The series is executive produced by Amazon MGM Studios, Crystal Dynamics, Waller-Bridge and Jenny Robins through Wells Street Films; Dmitri M. Johnson, Michael Lawrence Goldberg, Timothy I. Stevenson, and Dallas Dickinson through Story Kitchen; Michael Scheel and Legendary Television; Matt McInnis is co-executive producer and Jan R. Martin is producer.
At some point, you have to wonder if these constant “reimaginings” are less about telling new stories and more about policing the old ones. Waller-Bridge already made Indy into a bumbling sidekick. Now she’s eyeing Lara Croft. And Sophie Turner, who seems to have built her brand on rejecting conservative America, is supposed to sell it all to the very audience her team doesn’t seem to respect.
Ah for a return to the Angelina Jolie days of Tomb Raider…
Once upon a time, Tomb Raider was a celebration of adventure and skill. Today, it’s shaping up to be a lecture in body politics and a showcase for Hollywood’s never-ending campaign to rewrite what strength looks like. The real question is, who’s this even for?
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