Angelina Jolie is among the mega stars of Hollywood and she is also a filmmaker and humanitarian. The actress has quite an impressive personality and she is a fitness enthusiast. The actress rose to fame with her first leading role in a film named Hackers, in 1995. The beautiful star won her first Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the 1999 drama Girl, Interrupted. However, it was Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, which established her career as a leading Hollywood actress.
Angelina Jolie was a rising star in 2001, still, the director decided to bet on her, and the movie became a commercial success. It also became the turning point in the career of the actress.
How Angelina Jolie got the lead in Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
Angelina Jolie was just 24 years old when she was offered the role, and at the time she had a reputation for being slightly out of control and inviting trouble. However, it seemed like the director, Simon West was impressed by this quality of the actress and wanted her to canvas it for the role of Lara Croft. West explained in an interview with People,
“This troubled and dangerous aspect in her reputation actually helped the character.”
As per reports, the studio executives had doubts about her commitment to the project, hence Jolie offered to take daily drug tests to prove that she was serious about the role. When they agreed to it, she submitted to a screening test every day during the entire filming.
The movie was a massive hit and debuted at No. 1 at the box office in 2001. It brought a box-office collection of $274 million and propelled the career of A Mighty Heart actress to the next level.
Angelina Jolie’s look in the merchandise of Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
As per reports by E! Online, Angelina Jolie had worked hard to bring the video game hero to life. She was extremely dedicated to her role, which led to injuries and burns. She shared in the interview,
“I got dirty, scratched, and burnt—but those were great problems to have, because I felt like I was actually her in a certain way.”
However, the fact that affected her more was when she saw her look at the merchandise. The actress revealed that she had agreed to wear a padded bra for the costume but did not want the character to be over-sexualized. She felt that Lara’s strength was way sexier than her other assets. She shared in the interview,
“I was trying really hard not to cry. It was, ‘Why has someone superimposed a gun right in between my legs?’ or ‘My breasts are big enough—why are they enhanced that much bigger?’ I don’t like seeing her in that position. She’s so much like me.”
The audience loved the movie and it was a smashing hit at the box office.
The success of the first movie led to the talk of a sequel. In 2003, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider–The Cradle of Life was released. The second film was not as successful as the first one at the box office, with a gross of $156 million. But the movie received better reviews than the first part.
Source-Showbiz Cheat Sheet
