Tomb Raider Reboot Movie Casts Its Villain

The upcoming Tomb Raider reboot film has found its villain, apparently. Variety reports today that Walton Goggins is in "final negotiations" to play the main bad guy in the 2018 film.

Goggins had roles in Quentin Tarantino's latest films, Django Unchained and The Hateful Eight. He also stars in the new HBO show, Vice Principals.

The name of the character Goggins will play was not mentioned in the report, while no details about his backstory or motivations were provided.

The untitled Tomb Raider film comes to theaters on March 16, 2018. Oscar winner Alicia Vikander plays Lara Croft for a story that's said to be a reboot of sorts.

Producer Graham King recently explained that the film will focus on Lara's search for her dad. "This is kind of what we call a back to the roots story," he said. "This is a young Lara Croft in search to see if her father is dead or alive, so it has a very emotional part to it and I think that's what Alicia found so interesting about it."

Earlier this year, director Roar Uthaug (The Wave) lauded the 2013 reboot game and said his movie will try to do something similar. "I think making Lara Croft feel like a real human being, that's definitely something we want to bring to the big screen as well," he said. "I think we'll want to make people relate to Lara as a character. I'm hoping to bring some of my Norwegian sensibilities to the franchise."

The previous two Tomb Raider films--2001's Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and 2003's Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life--starred Angelina Jolie. The first movie remains the highest grossing video game adaptation ever in the US, but the disappointing box office for The Cradle of Life, combined with Jolie's reluctance to revisit the character, meant that a third film never materialized.