EXCLUSIVE: Evan Daugherty has been set to script Tomb Raider, the reboot of the video game property with the fetching heroine, with Warner Bros joining producer Graham King and MGM. The latter studio has signed on to partner with MGM and distribute the film. Daugherty’s recent work includes Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Divergent, Snow White and the Huntsman and G.I. Joe 3.

The franchise was first done as a feature in 2001 with Angelina Jolie playing the swashbuckling archaeologist. Between the original film and the 2003 sequel, the films grossed $432 million worldwide. The reboot is on a fast track, and there is strong progress to production language in the rights deal with Square Enix, the video game company behind the title. Denis O’Sullivan will oversee for GK Films, Cassidy Lange for MGM and Jon Berg for Warner Bros. The reboot will feature a younger Lara Croft going on her first adventure. Evan is also writing the Image comic 5 Ghosts for UCP/Benderspink. Daugherty is repped at UTA, Benderspink and attorney Jeff Frankel.

I saw a rumor online on twitter yesterday claiming that Tron director Joseph Kosinski is in early talks to direct the Tomb Raider reboot for MGM. Well, not true.

So I did some digging. Last we heard a few months back, Evan Daugherty has been set to write the Tomb Raider reboot of the video game property, with Warner Bros joining producer Graham King and MGM. Warner Bros will distribute the film. Daugherty’s recent credits includes Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Divergent, Snow White And The Huntsman and G.I. Joe 3.

Well the script is out to directors and here is the kicker, they're looking for a female director, a Michelle Maclaren type. The reboot is on a fast track, and there is strong progress to production language in the rights deal with Square Enix, the video game company behind the game.

Now normally I wouldn't write a story out of this and was going to drop on twitter instead but too many outlets would have taken my tweet and made a story out of it.

The rumors are swirling around town that producers of the fast-tracked Tomb Raider reboot have narrowed down their list of potential directors to three: Kathryn Bigelow, Catherine Hardwicke, and Mimi Leder.

The reboot is being produced by Warner Bros., MGM, GK Films and Eidos Interactive.

Tricia Brock, whose prolific career directing television includes everything from The Walking Dead to Girls, was previously reported to be attached, but our sources tell us she’s officially passed on the project. Producers are still determined to see “a Michelle MacLaren type” helm the script by Evan Daugherty, and now we’re hearing that Bigelow, Hardwicke, and Leder are on the shortlist to take Brock’s place.

Tomb Raider, based on the best-selling video game series, centers on archeologist Lara Croft as she travels the globe seeking priceless artifacts, battling evil alchemists, vicious mummies– even crocodiles–along the way. The franchise previously spawned two films with Angelina Jolie in the title role, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and The Cradle of Life. While the first installment earned a tidy box office, the sequel was panned by loyal fans and jaded critics alike.

Bigelow, who won an Oscar for her direction of The Hurt Locker and was nominated for Best Picture for Zero Dark Thirty, would certainly be a fantastic choice. Bigelow’s shortlisting could suggest that the Tomb Raider reboot may be taking on a more serious tone–not unlike the Daniel Craig-era of the Bond franchise. Bigelow certainly has what it takes to create tension, manage suspense and direct action, while never losing sight of her characters and their stories.

Leder proved her abilities to handle set-piece heavy action films with The Peacemaker and Deep Impact in the 90s, and her involvement would mark a welcome return to the Hollywood spotlight for the veteran director.

As for Hardwicke, the Twilight director could steer the tone of the project towards in a melodramatic direction. Hardwicke’s schedule, however, has her attached to direct half-a-dozen projects over the next two years, which could spell conflict if producers are pushing for an early 2016 start date.

Given the international success of The Hunger Games franchise, the eager anticipation for the upcoming Wonder Woman film, and movie-going audiences’ general desire to see more female action heroes gracing the big sreen, it seems only natural that the studios would be eager to move forward with Tomb Raider’s re-set. We’ll keep you posted as we try to lock down confirmation, and until then, we’ll just keep hoping that there’s truth to this rumor.

Bigelow, Hardwicke, and Leder are all repped by CAA.

After more than five years in development, the Tomb Raider reboot has unearthed a director.

Roar Uthaug, the director behind the Norwegian disaster drama The Wave, will direct MGM and Warner Bros.'s feature project that seeks to relaunch a franchise featuring archeologist Lara Croft.

At the same time, Geneva Robertson-Dworet, who penned the Black List script Hibernation and is co-writer on Transformers 5, is in negotiations to write the screenplay.

Croft is the star of a series of hit video games and one of the best known video game characters. She first appeared on screen portrayed by Angelina Jolie in 2001 in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, a blockbuster distributed by Paramount.

Warners has partnered with MGM to produce and release this latest incarnation. Graham King of GK Films is producing the new movie, having picked up the rights from interactive entertainment company Square Enix in 2011. (The property spent a few years in development at Warner Bros. before the rights reverted to Square Enix.) After a couple of years in development, GK partnered with MGM in 2013. Warners came on board in early 2015.

Plot details remain to be unsealed, but the film will detail Croft's first adventure. Evan Daugherty, Marti Noxon and Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby previously worked on the script.

Overseeing for MGM is Cassidy Lange, svp production, while at Warner Bros., Drew Crevello is shepherding. Denis O’Sullivan will run point for GK Films. MGM will oversee production.

Uthaug has quietly directed a range of movies in his homeland, from a horror thriller (Cold Prey) to a children’s adventure (Magic Silver) to a survival action thriller (Escape). Wave dealt with a tsunami that strikes Norway and was shortlisted to be submitted for the best foreign film category of Academy Awards.

Raider would be Uthaug’s English-language debut. He is repped by UTA.