The early-stage marketing for Gareth Edwards’Jurassic Park Rebirthis sneakily pointing to one of the best features of the original trilogy returning forScarlett Johansson’s new age of dinosaur action. The sequel that will act as a soft reboot of the franchise will focus on Scarlett Johansson’s character Zora Bennett, a special operative who is hired to help a paleontologist track down several of the only dinosaurs left on the planet to acquire their DNA. So far, the human characters played byJohansson, Mahershala Ali and Jonathan Baileyhave been the primary focus of the movie’s promotional images.
Anticipation is high for the franchise to move in a new direction after theJurassic Worldtrilogy ended with a much-maligned whimper withJurassic World Dominion. Based on what is known aboutJurassic World Rebirth’s plot, it seems like Gareth Edwards and screenwriter David Koepp are doing just that, and in doing so they may be reviving some of the elements that made the originalJurassic Parkan immortal classic. One key element of the movie’s early marketing points to that revival more directly than any other.
Jurassic World Rebirth Should Bring Back The Franchise’s Most Bizarre Idea That None Of The Films Were Brave Enough To Do
One Jurassic Park idea that’s been rumored for more than a decade should finally make its debut in the upcoming soft reboot of the dinosaur franchise.
Jurassic World Rebirth’s Marketing Is Hiding The Dinosaurs (& That’s Great)
Very Little Has Been Given Away About Which Dinosaurs Will Feature Prominently
For the most part, the early marketing materials forJurassic World Rebirthhave not revealed the dinosaurs that will be at the movie’s center, which is a great indication thatthey will receive the proper amount of deference in the movie itself. Whilesome images of the new T. Rex and the seafaring dinosaurshave surfaced in advance of the movie’s first full trailer, a majority of the teaser images have been focused on Scarlett Johansson’s character Zora Bennett and her team. So much emphasis on the human characters suggests that the movie may have the same focus.
1993
$63 million
$1.058 billion
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1997
$73 million
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2001
$93 million
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2015
$150-$215 million
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2018
$432 million
$1.31 billion
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2022
$265 million
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That can only be a good thing forRebirth, as keeping the dinosaurs largely hidden will make their full on-screen appearances feel earned, and restore some of the majesty and mystique that was so evident in the firstJurassic Park. The most memorable scenes from the movie, like the first appearance of Tyrannosaurus Rex after he broke out of his paddock, for example, are so impactful because of the build-up.The dinosaurs still felt special at that point, truly majestic giants out of place in time, andJurassic World Rebirthcan restore some of that grandeur.
The Jurassic World Movies’ CG Spectacle Made The Dinosaurs Feel Less Special
They Were Essentially Lost In The Visual Chaos Of The New World’s Setting
TheJurassic Parkmovies never really lost their respect for the dinosaurs, both as a source of fear and as a source of awe. Even the poorly-reviewedJurassic Park IIIintroduced the Spinosaurus, a truly massive and terrifying beast whose presence dominated the screen.That deference to the dinosaurs was lost in theJurassic Worldmoviesas they pivoted towards more CGI-heavy creature constructions. As the plot ofJurassic Worlditself noted, hybrid dinosaurs like the Indominus Rex and the Indoraptor were created to entertain a public that had become “bored” with dinosaurs.
Jurassic World Rebirthdirector Gareth Edwards has experience with giant creatures, as he was behind the movie that kicked off the Legendary Monsterverse, 2014’sGodzilla.
Unfortunately, the more sleek, fast-moving dinosaur designs made the dinosaurs themselves feel less special. As the scale and setting of each subsequentJurassic Worldmovie grew as the plots pivoted off the islands,they devolved into CGI spectacles as opposed to well-written, character-driven storieswith dinosaurs that felt like living, breathing threats.Jurassic World Rebirthchoosing to hide its dinosaurs in early marketing materials could mean that they’re moving back towards the original trilogy’s approach to presenting the dinosaurs.
