OOOH. So That's Why it Hasn't Been Doing Well

It seems that the Studio behind the latest Tomb Raider movie is blaming the recent lackluster Tomb Raider games for the movie not doing well.

Studio Cites Game for Weak 'Tomb Raider' Sequel

Mon July 28, 2003 06:07 PM ET
By Ben Berkowitz

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - The romance between Hollywood and the video game industry is suddenly a lot chillier after the studio behind "Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life" on Monday cited problems with a related game for the sequel's weaker-than-expected debut.

The movie and video game industries have grown closer in recent years as films increasingly are tied in to games and games, in turn, are licensed as movies.

But the comments by Paramount Pictures underscore the tensions between the two sides when sales disappoint.

"The Cradle of Life," the second film based on games heroine Lara Croft, opened in fourth place at the U.S. box office last weekend with sales of $21.7 million, well below the opening weekend of 2001's "Tomb Raider."

.The film, released by Viacom Inc.'s Paramount Pictures unit, faced heavy competition, but was still weaker than most in the industry had expected. [Reuters]

So it wasn't that most of the reviews said it was pretty lame. Nope, the movie couldn't possibly suck.