Pandora's Box

Lore & Background

Pandora's box is an object from ancient legends that supposedly contains a deadly plague (the companion to the origin of life itself). The box, hidden in the mysterious Cradle of Life, can only be found with a magical sphere that serves as a map. Inside the Cradle, a labyrinth made of a strange crystalline substance where normal laws of physics do not apply, the box floats in a pool of highly corrosive black acid (linking back to one of the myths about Pandora's box). Dr. Jonathan Reiss, a Nobel Prize-winning scientist and business magnate turned misanthropic bioweapons dealer, plans to unleash the plague, saving only those people he deems worthy. Lara Croft ultimately replaces the box in the pool and leaves it there.

In Their Own Story

Dr. Jonathan Reiss reveals his plans to unleash the plague from Pandora's box, saving only those people he deems worthy. Lara Croft and Terry Sheridan pursue Reiss to the Cradle of Life near Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania. Inside the Cradle, a labyrinth made of a strange crystalline substance where normal laws of physics do not apply, they find a pool of highly corrosive black acid in which the box floats. Lara fights Reiss and throws him into the acid pool, which fatally dissolves him. Terry then announces his intention to take the box for himself, but when he refuses to back down, Lara regretfully shoots him dead, replaces the box in the pool, and leaves.

Reader's Guide

Pandora's box functions within the narrative of the film as the central MacGuffin. It is an object from ancient legends that supposedly contains a deadly plague (the companion to the origin of life itself). The box is hidden in the mysterious Cradle of Life and can only be found with a magical sphere that serves as a map. Dr. Jonathan Reiss, a Nobel Prize-winning scientist and business magnate turned misanthropic bioweapons dealer, seeks the box to unleash the plague, saving only those people he deems worthy. Lara Croft ultimately retrieves the box from the Cradle of Life, but after killing Reiss and then Terry Sheridan (who wanted the box for himself), she replaces the box in the pool of highly corrosive black acid and leaves it there, preventing the plague from being unleashed.

Did You Know?

• Pandora's box is described in the film as containing a deadly plague that is the companion to the origin of life itself.
• The box can only be found with a magical sphere that serves as a map, which was stolen by crime lord Chen Lo.
• Inside the Cradle of Life, the box floats in a pool of highly corrosive black acid that fatally dissolves Dr. Jonathan Reiss.
• Lara Croft ultimately replaces the box in the acid pool and leaves it there, preventing the plague from being unleashed.
• The Cradle of Life is a labyrinth made of a strange crystalline substance where normal laws of physics do not apply.