Tomb Raider movie reboot coming in 2013

It's been a big week for game-based movie news. Yesterday, Sony Pictures revealed that it is readying a fifth Resident Evil film for release in 2012. The company also revealed on Monday that the sequel to the first Silent Hill film will begin production this week in Toronto, Canada.

Now comes even more news on the game-film front. In a self-styled "preemptive strike," production company GK Films has acquired the movie rights to the Tomb Raider series from Square Enix. The company is readying a "reboot" of the film franchise for a 2013 release, with Graham King and Tim Headington producing. GK Films also produced the recent animated hit Rango and last year's thrillers The Tourist and The Town.

According to the announcement, GK Films is already envisioning Tomb Raider as a franchise, referring to multiple films in the series. It will "create daring new adventures for the young and dynamic Lara Croft." The release also mentions the forthcoming game reboot, which chronicles the heroine's first adventure after being stranded on an island after a shipwreck.

The previous two Tomb Raider films, which starred Angelina Jolie, were released in 2001 (Lara Croft: Tomb Raider) and 2003 (Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life). Together, they grossed $432 million worldwide, although the latter film was a box-office disappointment domestically, grossing just under $67 million. The lackluster performance was partially blamed on the poor reception of the 2003 game Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness for the PC and PlayStation 2.