Where was Lara Croft: Tomb Raider filmed? Cambodia, Iceland, South Africa, Greece, and England. Real tombs, glaciers, wingsuits, and a brave butler with a tray.
Let’s be honest – you didn’t come here for a geography lesson. You came because you watched Lara Croft backflip off an exploding statue while dual-wielding pistols and thought, “Wait… where the actual heck was that filmed?”
Good news: almost none of it was green-screen. Bad news: you now have a sudden urge to book flights to Cambodia, Iceland, South Africa, Kenya, Greece, Hong Kong, and England.
Angelina Jolie (2001-2003) trained with an SAS instructor and nearly became Trinity in The Matrix. Alicia Vikander (2018) gained 12 pounds of muscle and learned to hold her breath for 90 seconds in freezing water.
The locations? They gained permanent bragging rights. Let’s raid.
Table of Contents
🏴☠️ All Lara Croft: Tomb Raider Filming Locations
From ancient Cambodian temples to Icelandic glaciers, here’s exactly where Lara cracked her first whip and fired her first dual pistols.
🎬 Where Was Tomb Raider (2001) Filmed?
In Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001), the billionaire adrenaline junkie and part-time reality-saver discovers her dead dad (played by her actual dad, Jon Voight) left her a cosmic riddle involving the All-Seeing Eye. A (not so) secret society called the Illuminati wants it first.
Cue: motorbike chases through London, temple puzzles that require actual archaeology degrees, and a finale in “Siberia” that’s actually Iceland… but don’t tell Lara. Also, Daniel Craig shows up as a rival treasure hunter and shares an awkward kiss. Pre-Bond. Pre-cool. Pre-whatever that was.
The Cast: Angelina Jolie (eyebrow-acting royalty), Jon Voight (yes, her real father), Iain Glen (before he knew dragons), Daniel Craig (wearing a leather vest unironically), Chris Barrie (the butler with the tray).
What was filmed here:
- Ta Prohm Temple, Angkor Wat, Cambodia: The vine-choked temple where Lara finds the first Eye piece.
- Phnom Kulen Waterfall, Cambodia: Lara’s waterfall jump done by Jolie herself – no double.
- Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon, Iceland: Icy “Siberia” dog-sledding climax filmed on a real glacier.
- Hatfield House, Hertfordshire, England: Croft Manor’s exterior and interior, where Lara practices her flips.
- Old Royal Naval College, Greenwich, London: The Painted Hall doubled as a Venice church interior.
- Leadenhall Market, London: Lara’s motorbike chase through a covered Victorian market.
- Tower Bridge, London: Iconic bridge-crossing shot closed an entire weekend for filming.
- Windsor Great Park, England: Doubled for the Cambodian jungle during sprinting action shots.
- Pinewood Studios, UK (007 Stage): Croft Manor interiors, tomb puzzle rooms, and Illuminati boardroom.
Trivia to annoy your friends:
- Angelina Jolie is left-handed. The prop department built mirrored holsters so she could reload her dual pistols properly. That’s attention to detail.
- When Lara picks up an artifact and says “A-ha!” – that’s the exact same sound byte from the Tomb Raider PlayStation games. The sound designer smuggled it in like a ninja.
- The butler, Hillary, uses a silver tray to block bullets during the manor attack. This is a direct nod to gamers shooting the creepy butler, so he’d drop his tray. The filmmakers saw you. They validated you.
- Jolie turned down the role of Trinity in The Matrix (1999) because of scheduling conflicts. Imagine that timeline. Trinity with bangs. Lara with leather pants. We lost something beautiful.
- Jolie trained with a former SAS instructor for weeks. She could field-strip a gun faster than you can make toast.
- The production paid Cambodia’s government a small fortune to film at Ta Prohm. Worth it. The temple roots are real, and they are hungry.
🏺 Where Was Tomb Raider: Cradle Of Life Filmed?
In Lara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life (2003), someone steals Pandora’s Box. Not metaphorically – literally. It’s in a volcano in Africa… because of course it is.
Lara teams up with her ex-boyfriend, Terry Sheridan (Gerard Butler doing a Scottish accent while also being Scottish – so just his voice), to find it before a disgraced scientist sells it to a bioweapons dealer.
Highlights: underwater ruins in Greece, leaping off a Hong Kong skyscraper in a wingsuit (Real wingsuit, no CGI), and a volcano fight that almost cooked the cast. The stakes: global extinction. Lara’s outfit budget: unlimited.
The Cast: Angelina Jolie (still sassy), Gerard Butler (pre-300 abs, pre-“This is Sparta”), Ciarán Hinds (doing an accent that exists in no known country), Chris Barrie (the butler returns with tray intact).
What was filmed here:
- Oia, Santorini, Greece: Opening Greek wedding and underwater Luna Temple exploration sequence.
- Hell’s Gate National Park, Kenya: African “Cradle of Life” search with volcanic cliffs and no shade.
- Amboseli National Park, Kenya: Additional African expedition shots featuring Mount Kilimanjaro as a photobomb.
- International Finance Centre (IFC), Hong Kong: Real wingsuit leap with inventors themselves – no wires, no CGI.
- Times Square, Causeway Bay, Hong Kong: Urban chase scenes through Hong Kong’s natural neon chaos.
- Snowdonia, Wales, UK: Doubled for mainland China’s mountains because Wales is rainy enough.
- Llyn Gwynant, Snowdonia, Wales: A lake that doubled for Chinese mountain approaches near the temple.
- Shepperton Studios, UK: Volcanic interior sets for the Cradle of Life‘s final showdown.
- Pinewood Studios, UK: Pandora’s Box temple interiors and additional Croft Manor scenes.
Trivia to annoy your friends:
- This film was banned in China. Officials said the portrayal of China – chaotic streets, triad gangs, secret societies – was “malicious.” They were not wrong.
- The wingsuit scene used the actual inventors of the wingsuit. They jumped off a real skyscraper. For $1. They wanted the footage for their demo reel. Absolute lunatics. Legends.
- The volcano at Shepperton caught fire twice. Not scripted. The fire department got involved.
- Angelina Jolie trained to hold her breath for over a minute underwater for the Santorini ruins scene. She also went scuba diving in a wedding dress. That’s not a metaphor.
- Gerard Butler reportedly did most of his own stunts because he “didn’t trust the stunt double.” That man later fought 300 Persians. We believe him.
- The underwater temple set in Santorini was built in the Aegean Sea. Crew members had to dive to adjust props. In winter. In Greece. In the cold. They deserve medals.
- Jolie’s “boot camp” for this film made the first film’s training look like yoga. Kickboxing. Scuba. Weapons training. She could probably still kill you with a spoon.
🪢 Where Was Tomb Raider (2018) Filmed?
In the 2018 reboot of Tomb Raider, Lara Croft is broke. She delivers food on a bicycle in East London. She refuses to sign her father’s death certificate because she’s stubborn and also grieving.
Then she finds his secret research about the mythical island of Yamatai, where an ancient Japanese queen’s tomb supposedly holds the power to control death. She shipwrecks. She survives.
She gets absolutely wrecked by waterfalls, mudslides, and Walton Goggins (who plays a villain so creepy you’ll check your locks). No dual pistols. No magic. Just grit, blood, and a climbing axe that breaks about 47 times. This is a reboot. Forget the other movies. This Lara hurts.
The Cast: Alicia Vikander (packing 12 pounds of new muscle), Dominic West (dead dad with secrets), Walton Goggins (villain with a face mask and a southern accent – terrifying), Daniel Wu (drunk boat captain with heart), Kristin Scott Thomas (the “please just sign the paper” lady).
What was filmed here:
- Table Mountain, Cape Town, South Africa: Rugged “Yamatai” island backdrop for Lara’s survival hell.
- Cape Town Quarry, South Africa: Man-made ship graveyard built from scratch for the island wreckage.
- Hout Bay, Cape Town, South Africa: Doubled for Hong Kong harbour, where Lara hires Lu Ren.
- Karkloof Falls, South Africa: The actual waterfall jump exterior shot.
- Lee Valley White Water Centre, England: The river rapids where Lara gets obliterated.
- Cape Town Film Studios, South Africa: Primary studio for tomb interiors, shipwreck, and Himiko’s chamber.
- Wilton House, Salisbury, England: Croft Manor exterior for the reboot’s more grounded version.
- Brick Lane & Hackney, London, England: Lara’s East London bike courier life delivering food dramatically.
- 62 Buckingham Gate, London, England: Croft Holdings exterior, where Lara refuses to sign paperwork.
- Peak District, England: English countryside for Lara’s childhood flashback scenes with dad.
- Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden, England: Sinking ship sequence in the Harry Potter water tank.
Trivia that will make you respect Alicia Vikander forever:
- Alicia Vikander gained 12 pounds of pure muscle for this role. Her training: 4 hours a day, 7 months, MMA, rock climbing, swimming, archery, and eating enough chicken to bankrupt a farm.
- She did all her own stunts. The mudslides. The falls. The ship graveyard climb, where she’s literally hanging from rusty metal. Her stunt double’s job title became “moral support.”
- Daisy Ridley was offered the role first. She declined due to Star Wars scheduling. Imagine Rey as Lara. Weep for what could have been.
- The shipwreck sequence was filmed in a tank with 500,000 liters of water. It took two weeks. Vikander learned to hold her breath for 90 seconds. In cold water. While acting terrified. While underwater. While being awesome.
- The prop team built 47 identical climbing axes because Vikander kept breaking them. Lara is not gentle with equipment. Neither is Alicia.
- Vikander did the waterfall jump. No double. The crew made her sign a waiver that basically said: “You might die.” She signed it. She jumped. She’s fine. Mostly.
- The mudslide scene was filmed on a real hillside. They dumped 10 tons of mud. Vikander slid down it. Repeatedly. She had mud in places mud should never be.
❓ Lara Croft: Tomb Raider FAQ
Look, I know you’ve been scrolling. You want the nerdy stuff. Here it is. No fluff. Just facts.
How many Tomb Raider movies are there?
Three live-action films: 2001, 2003, & 2018. (There’s also a 2024 Netflix anime with a different voice actress, but that’s a conversation for another day.)
What order should I watch them in?
2001 → 2003 → 2018. But fair warning: the 2018 reboot ignores the first two like they’re spam calls. Different Lara. Different manor. No butler tray. No backflips. Just a lot of mud and screaming.
Where was the Cambodia temple filmed?
Ta Prohm – the one with tree roots that look like they’re strangling the building. Jolie loved it so much that she later got Cambodian citizenship. From the actual King. Personally. No big deal.
Is Croft Manor a real house?
No, honey, but Hatfield House (2001) and Wilton House (2018) played dress-up as it. You can visit. No gym. No weapons vault. No butler with a tray. Bring your own disappointment.
Did Jolie do her own stunts?
Mostly. She drew the line at the wingsuit jump because she’s not clinically insane. The inventors did it for $1. They are clinically insane.
Where was the “Siberia” scene filmed?
Iceland. Because why build a fake frozen wasteland when you can just stand on a real glacier and regret all your life choices?
Is Jon Voight really her dad?
Yes. In real life. And he played her dead dad. Imagine explaining that Thanksgiving dinner.
Who almost played Lara?
Daisy Ridley (too busy with Star Wars), Emilia Clarke (too busy with dragons), Kristen Stewart (too busy being Kristen Stewart).
Is Sophie Turner Lara Croft?
No. That rumor started because she’s blonde and British. By that logic, so’s a Golden Retriever. Put down the Twitter.
Did Daniel Craig play Lara’s boyfriend?
He played a rival. One awkward kiss. Then he became James Bond. Bro upgraded like a Pokémon.
Who played Lara in 2018?
Alicia Vikander. Gained 12 pounds of pure muscle. Did every stunt herself. Trained for 7 months. Ate enough chicken to start a farm. Absolute legend.
What’s the “A-ha!” sound?
The exact same sound byte from the Lara Croft PlayStation games. The sound designer snuck it in like a raccoon stealing your garbage. Legendary.
Why does the butler have a silver tray?
In the games, players shot him for following them around like a creepy grandpa. He blocked with the tray. The movie saw you. The movie respects you.
Was Cradle of Life really banned in China?
Yes. China said it made them look like a chaotic mess of triads and secret societies. To be fair, have you watched the movie?
Did Vikander really gain 12 pounds of muscle?
Yes. 7 months. 4 hours a day. Chicken and broccoli until she cried. She could probably bench-press you by the end.
Is Lara left-handed?
She’s ambidextrous. Jolie is a lefty (mirrored holsters). Vikander is a righty (trained both hands because she’s a show-off with something to prove).
Which movie has the most real stunts?
Cradle of Life. The real wingsuit inventors jumped off a real skyscraper. No CGI. No wires. Just vibes and a death wish.
Are the 2018 and Angelina Jolie movies connected?
Not even a little bit. Hard reboot. Zero connection. Think of it as an alternate timeline where Lara never had time for dual pistols and her biggest enemy was paperwork.
Will there be another Tomb Raider movie with Alicia Vikander?
MGM lost the rights in 2022, and Vikander is officially out. The planned sequel is deader than Lara’s last henchman. Rest in peace, muscle-mommy Lara. You deserved a trilogy.
How many Tomb Raider movies with Angelina Jolie are there?
Two. She walked away after Cradle of Life to adopt a small United Nations army of children and personally save the world. You know, a light Tuesday.
Why did Jolie get Cambodian citizenship?
She fell in love with the country while filming, adopted her son Maddox, and the King personally granted it. That’s not a PR stunt. That’s just Angelina being Angelina.
📺 Where to Watch the Tomb Raider Movies
You’ve made it this far. Your browser has 47 tabs open. Just pick one and watch already.
- Watch on Amazon Prime:
- DVD/Blu-ray: The Tomb Raider 3-Movie Collection includes deleted scenes, commentary tracks, and featurettes.
- Other Platforms: Apple TV, Google Play, YouTube Movies, Vudu, or Microsoft Store.
Final Raid Report: Lara Croft has jumped off real skyscrapers in wingsuits designed by lunatics. She’s swum through real underwater ruins in Greece wearing a wedding dress.
She’s climbed real Cambodian temples that predate your entire family tree by a thousand years. She did it with a British accent, a bad attitude, and zero fear of insurance premiums.
The locations are real. The stunts are real. The butler’s tray is real. Now go watch. And when life gets hard, ask yourself – what would Lara do? Probably backflip off something expensive.
Disclaimer: This fan-created article is provided for informational and educational purposes only. All referenced titles, names, and related intellectual property are the property of their respective owners, and no copyright infringement is intended.
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