There’s a new entry in the Jurassic Park / Jurassic World franchise heading our way, with Jurassic World Rebirth set to reach theatres on July 2, 2025 – and when this one plays out on the big screen, it will be introducing viewers to creatures known as Mutadons and the D-Rex. Empire was able to dig up some details on these creatures, and you can read about them below.

News of the new Jurassic World movie first hit back in January of 2024, when it was revealed that the screenplay had already been written by original Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp, returning to the franchise for the first time since The Lost World: Jurassic Park. The project was assembled in a mad scramble after that, with Godzilla and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story director Gareth Edwards ending up at the helm. This new Jurassic World movie won’t be featuring any returning lead characters from the previous Jurassic Park / Jurassic World movies, so describing it as a “Rebirth” could be accurate. The characters played by Sam Neill, Jeff Goldblum, and Laura Dern are out, as are the ones played by Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard.

The new characters are played by the likes of Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton), Mahershala Ali (Green Book), Rupert Friend (Obi-Wan Kenobi), and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (The Lincoln Lawyer) – all of whom had their roles directly offered to them. Luna Blaise (Manifest), on the other hand, had to (according to Deadline) “beat out a number of actors” to land her role. David Iacono of The Summer I Turned Pretty, child actress Audrina Miranda, Philippine Velge (Station Eleven), Ed Skrein (Deadpool), and Béchir Sylvain (Diarra from Detroit) are also in the cast… along with a bunch of hungry dinosaurs.

Glen Powell (Top Gun: Maverick) was also offered a role, but he turned it down because he felt his presence in the movie wouldn’t help it. He did say that the script is great, though.

Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley are producing the film for Kennedy/Marshall. Steven Spielberg is executive producing through Amblin Entertainment. Universal’s executive vp of production development Sara Scott and creative executive Jacqueline Garell are overseeing the project for the studio. 

Here’s what we’ve previously heard about the plot: Jurassic World Rebirth sees an intrepid team racing to secure DNA samples from the three most colossal creatures across land, sea and air. Five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, the planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived. The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind. Johansson’s character is Zora Bennett, “a skilled covert operations expert contracted to lead a team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world’s three most massive dinosaurs. When Zora’s operation intersects with a civilian family whose boating expedition was capsized by marauding aquatic dinos, they all find themselves stranded on an island where they come face-to-face with a sinister, shocking discovery that’s been hidden from the world for decades.” Bailey is playing paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis, with Ali as Zora’s most trusted team leader, Duncan Kincaid. 

Edwards told Empire that the six-limbed D-Rex is “kind of like if the T-Rex was designed by H.R. Giger, and then that whole thing had sex with a Rancor. It’s a design that I was really happy with; I’d like to buy the toy of it when it comes out.” ILM’s David Vickery added, “It’s as if another animal has been wrapped around the T-Rex. Gareth wanted us to feel sorry for it as well as terrified, because its deformities have caused it some pain, and there’s an encumbrance to it.“

As for the winged Mutadons, Koepp said they’re “a combination of a pterosaur and a Raptor. Those came from my strange mind. We saw in some of the previous Jurassic World movies that their experiments made dinosaurs bigger, meaner, scarier, and it occurred to me and Steven [Spielberg] that those can’t all have gone well.“

Are you looking forward to seeing Mutadons and the D-Rex in Jurassic World Rebirth? Share your thoughts on these creatures by leaving a comment below.

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Jonathan Bailey, who plays paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis, told Empire that the upcoming sequel is a “love letter” to the original Jurassic Park. “It really does feel that it’s welcoming people to really celebrate the original film,” he said. “It has that wonder and awe, while not being scared to re-inject the thrill and the fear.” Scarlett Johansson agrees. “It hearkens back to the first one,” she said. “It has a lot of good jump-scares, and the stakes are high.“

While the Jurassic World trilogy explored what would happen if the dinosaurs entered our world, Rebirth wants to return to their habitat. “We wanted to recapture the idea that we are in the dinosaurs’ environment,” said screenwriter David Koepp. “The last few movies were exploring the idea of, ‘Hey, what would it be like if they were in our environment?’ They did that very well, and now we wanted to explore how it felt to go back to theirs.“

Jurassic World Rebirth sees “an intrepid team racing to secure DNA samples from the three most colossal creatures across land, sea and air. Five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, the planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived. The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind.” The film recently received a PG-13 rating for “intense sequences of violence/action, bloody images, some suggestive references, language and a drug reference.“

Johansson plays Zora Bennett, “a skilled covert operations expert contracted to lead a team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world’s three most massive dinosaurs. When Zora’s operation intersects with a civilian family whose boating expedition was capsized by marauding aquatic dinos, they all find themselves stranded on an island where they come face-to-face with a sinister, shocking discovery that’s been hidden from the world for decades.”

Jurassic World Rebirth will hit theaters on July 2nd.

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Here’s what we’ve previously heard about the plot: “Jurassic World Rebirth sees an intrepid team racing to secure DNA samples from the three most colossal creatures across land, sea, and air. Five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, the planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived. The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind.”

Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley are producing the film for Kennedy/Marshall. Steven Spielberg is an executive producer through Amblin Entertainment. Universal’s executive vice president of production development, Sara Scott, and creative executive, Jacqueline Garell, oversee the project. The film is slated for July 2.

Meanwhile, The Smashing Machine, which is the Dwayne Johnson/Emily Blunt film from Benny Safdie, is set for an October release date and has also received its rating. The MMA drama will be Rated R for “language and some drug abuse.”

A poster and a trailer have both been released this week for the anticipated A24 film. In the teaser, we hear Johnson, as Kerr, state, “Winning is the best feeling there is. It’s 40,000 and they’re cheering you on. There’s no other high like it in the world.” The hold that it would have on his career no doubt offers a sort of reflection of former WWE Superstar The Rock, but here we start to see just what sort of impact it all had on Kerr and his wife, played by Emily Blunt.

Mark Kerr was known to be an incredible in-ring talent, proving to be NCAA wrestling champion as well as a team trial winner with USA Wrestling, which partly focuses on freestyle wrestling. Once he hit the UFC scene, Kerr became a two-time heavyweight tournament champion in 1997. Notably, that first championship came via his second fight in the organization, beating Dan Bobish via submission in under two minutes. Mark Kerr was previously the subject of a documentary all the way back in 2002. As part of his getting into character, Dwayne Johnson has previously shown off his training regiment.

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The Jurassic series is on its third feature film iteration after the Park and World trilogies. And while the legendary John Williams ended his run in the franchise along with Spielberg after The Lost World, his themes have been too iconic not to be included in the proceeding films. While Don Davis stepped into the composer role with Jurassic Park III, Michael Giacchino would become the resident composer for the initial Jurassic World movies. Jurassic World Rebirth is aiming to return the franchise to its roots and the new composer, two-time Oscar-winner Alexandre Desplat, talks with Entertainment Weekly about paying homage to Williams with his score.

Desplat stated, “Every score John Williams has written has become an iconic score, so it’s quite a daunting task.” The composer of the Harry Potter movies and The Shape of Water continued to say, “At first, you’re excited, then panic comes along because you realize that you’re taking over from a fabulous composer who invented so many great things that the whole planet knows. You try to find your way through that.” For Rebirth, Desplat says he tried to balance making something new, while using “quotes of John’s music.”

He added, “You try to make it your own, and at the same time, pay homage to Williams’ music, and try to find your own way through that by inventing new themes and ideas, but staying in the same artistic zone as the scores of the franchise.” Jurassic World Rebirth director Gareth Edwards gave his own statement to EW, saying, “Like the epic dinosaurs in our film, Alexandre is the last of his kind, a rare species with the talent and knowledge to orchestrate his own classical scores. If studios could clone him, they would. Until science finds a way, I’ll happily settle for those goosebump-inducing memories of hearing his music at Abbey Road as he conducted a one-hundred-piece orchestra for our ‘little’ Jurassic movie. Chills.”

The new characters are played by the likes of Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton), Mahershala Ali (Green Book), Rupert Friend (Obi-Wan Kenobi), and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (The Lincoln Lawyer) – all of whom had their roles directly offered to them. Luna Blaise (Manifest), on the other hand, had to (according to Deadline) “beat out a number of actors” to land her role. David Iacono of The Summer I Turned Pretty, child actress Audrina Miranda, Philippine Velge (Station Eleven), Ed Skrein (Deadpool), and Béchir Sylvain (Diarra from Detroit) are also in the cast.

Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley are producing the film for Kennedy/Marshall. Steven Spielberg is an executive producer through Amblin Entertainment. Universal’s executive vice president of production development, Sara Scott, and creative executive, Jacqueline Garell, oversee the project.

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Jurassic World Rebirth wants to give you those old-school vibes if it wasn’t obvious before. The upcoming Gareth Edwards-directed film finds audiences walking with the dinosaurs five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, with Scarlett Johansson and Jonathan Bailey leading the charge. Rebirth marks a new era for the franchise, and today, Universal gives fans a behind-the-scenes look to help get them excited for the film’s July 2 launch.

In today’s behind-the-scenes video for Jurassic World Rebirth, cast and crew members offer insight into what makes the latest chapter of the series special and how it leans on iconic aspects of the original film instead of the Jurassic World trilogy. The video promises a fun and funny adventure with intense character chemistry, nail-biting action, and majestic settings. As technology evolves, so do the special effects in Jurassic World Rebirth. The dinosaurs look stunning in their sharp-toothed glory, and the island has never looked more alive, lush, and overflowing with giant lizards looking to make a meal of the human trespassers.

The new characters are played by the likes of Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton), Mahershala Ali (Green Book), Rupert Friend (Obi-Wan Kenobi), and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (The Lincoln Lawyer) – all of whom had their roles directly offered to them. Luna Blaise (Manifest), on the other hand, had to (according to Deadline) “beat out a number of actors” to land her role. David Iacono of The Summer I Turned Pretty, child actress Audrina Miranda, Philippine Velge (Station Eleven), Ed Skrein (Deadpool), and Béchir Sylvain (Diarra from Detroit) are also in the cast… along with a bunch of hungry dinosaurs.

Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley are producing the film for Kennedy/Marshall. Steven Spielberg is an executive producer through Amblin Entertainment. Universal’s executive vice president of production development, Sara Scott, and creative executive, Jacqueline Garell, oversee the project.

Here’s what we’ve previously heard about the plot: “Jurassic World Rebirth sees an intrepid team racing to secure DNA samples from the three most colossal creatures across land, sea, and air. Five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, the planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived. The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind.” Johansson’s character is Zora Bennett, “a skilled covert operations expert contracted to lead a team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world’s three most massive dinosaurs. When Zora’s operation intersects with a civilian family whose boating expedition was capsized by marauding aquatic dinos, they all find themselves stranded on an island where they come face-to-face with a sinister, shocking discovery that’s been hidden from the world for decades.” Bailey plays paleontologist, Dr. Henry Loomis, with Ali as Zora’s most trusted team leader, Duncan Kincaid.

How does Jurassic World Rebirth look to you? Are you excited to return to the island and run when things inevitably go wrong? I hope so!

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There’s a new entry in the Jurassic World franchise heading our way, with Jurassic World Rebirth set to reach theatres on July 2, 2025 – and, of course, the film was hyped up in a major way during the Universal panel at the CinemaCon event in Las Vegas with director Gareth Edwards and stars Scarlett Johansson and Mahershala Ali taking to the stage.

Johansson has wanted to be in a Jurassic movie for a long time. “This time, I went to Steven Spielberg directly and told him I’d play any role, even if I was eaten in the first five minutes,” she said. “So it’s an incredible honour to be here with Jurassic World Rebirth.” She added that they wanted to put the scares back into the franchise and filmed on location in Thailand for more realism.

The audience was treated to some footage from the film, which kicked off with a creepy dinosaur escaping from a lab and butchering some of the techs. Jonathan Bailey plays a scientist who needs an egg, and Johansson and Ali play the mercenaries protecting him. Things go wrong, as they always do in this franchise, and the gang are in very serious trouble. Our own Chris Bumbray said there’s a great scene with the team battling a dinosaur at sea, with loads of action and horror. Johansson delivers a very physical, action heroine performance. Bumbray added that Rebirth looks “a lot” better than any of the recent Jurassic World movies, and we should be seeing a new trailer soon. I can’t wait!

News of the new Jurassic World movie first hit back in January of 2024, when it was revealed that the screenplay had already been written by original Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp, returning to the franchise for the first time since The Lost World: Jurassic Park. The project was assembled in a mad scramble after that, with Godzilla and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story director Gareth Edwards ending up at the helm. This new Jurassic World movie won’t be featuring any returning lead characters from the previous Jurassic Park / Jurassic World movies, so describing it as a “Rebirth” could be accurate. The characters played by Sam Neill, Jeff Goldblum, and Laura Dern are out, as are the ones played by Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard.

The new characters are played by the likes of Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton), Mahershala Ali (Green Book), Rupert Friend (Obi-Wan Kenobi), and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (The Lincoln Lawyer) – all of whom had their roles directly offered to them. Luna Blaise (Manifest), on the other hand, had to (according to Deadline) “beat out a number of actors” to land her role. David Iacono of The Summer I Turned Pretty, child actress Audrina Miranda, Philippine Velge (Station Eleven), Ed Skrein (Deadpool), and Béchir Sylvain (Diarra from Detroit) are also in the cast… along with a bunch of hungry dinosaurs.

Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley are producing the film for Kennedy/Marshall. Steven Spielberg is executive producing through Amblin Entertainment. Universal’s executive vp of production development Sara Scott and creative executive Jacqueline Garell are overseeing the project for the studio. 

Here’s what we’ve previously heard about the plot: Jurassic World Rebirth sees an intrepid team racing to secure DNA samples from the three most colossal creatures across land, sea and air. Five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, the planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived. The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind. Johansson’s character is Zora Bennett, “a skilled covert operations expert contracted to lead a team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world’s three most massive dinosaurs. When Zora’s operation intersects with a civilian family whose boating expedition was capsized by marauding aquatic dinos, they all find themselves stranded on an island where they come face-to-face with a sinister, shocking discovery that’s been hidden from the world for decades.” Bailey is playing paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis, with Ali as Zora’s most trusted team leader, Duncan Kincaid. 

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There’s a new entry in the Jurassic Park / Jurassic World franchise heading our way, with Jurassic World Rebirth set to reach theatres on July 2, 2025. Earlier this week, Universal let it be known that a trailer would be dropping on Wednesday, and now, true to their word, they have gotten the day started by unveiling that trailer! You can check it out in the embed above.

News of the new Jurassic World movie first hit back in January of 2024, when it was revealed that the screenplay had already been written by original Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp, returning to the franchise for the first time since The Lost World: Jurassic Park. The project was assembled in a mad scramble after that, with Godzilla and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story director Gareth Edwards ending up at the helm. This new Jurassic World movie won’t be featuring any returning lead characters from the previous Jurassic Park / Jurassic World movies, so describing it as a “Rebirth” could be accurate. The characters played by Sam Neill, Jeff Goldblum, and Laura Dern are out, as are the ones played by Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard.

The new characters are played by the likes of Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton), Mahershala Ali (Green Book), Rupert Friend (Obi-Wan Kenobi), and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (The Lincoln Lawyer) – all of whom had their roles directly offered to them. Luna Blaise (Manifest), on the other hand, had to (according to Deadline) “beat out a number of actors” to land her role. David Iacono of The Summer I Turned Pretty, child actress Audrina Miranda, Philippine Velge (Station Eleven), Ed Skrein (Deadpool), and Béchir Sylvain (Diarra from Detroit) are also in the cast… along with a bunch of hungry dinosaurs.

Glen Powell (Top Gun: Maverick) was also offered a role, but he turned it down because he felt his presence in the movie wouldn’t help it. He did say that the script is great, though.

Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley are producing the film for Kennedy/Marshall. Steven Spielberg is executive producing through Amblin Entertainment. Universal’s executive vp of production development Sara Scott and creative executive Jacqueline Garell are overseeing the project for the studio. 

Here’s what we’ve previously heard about the plot: Jurassic World Rebirth sees an intrepid team racing to secure DNA samples from the three most colossal creatures across land, sea and air. Five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, the planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived. The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind. Johansson’s character is Zora Bennett, “a skilled covert operations expert contracted to lead a team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world’s three most massive dinosaurs. When Zora’s operation intersects with a civilian family whose boating expedition was capsized by marauding aquatic dinos, they all find themselves stranded on an island where they come face-to-face with a sinister, shocking discovery that’s been hidden from the world for decades.” Bailey is playing paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis, with Ali as Zora’s most trusted team leader, Duncan Kincaid. 

What did you think of the Jurassic World Rebirth trailer? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

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There’s a new entry in the Jurassic Park / Jurassic World franchise heading our way, with Jurassic World Rebirth set to reach theatres on July 2, 2025 – and with the first teaser trailer expected to drop online tomorrow (February 5th), Vanity Fair has unveiled a batch of new images, while also sharing some new story and character details! The images can be seen at the bottom of this article.

News of the new Jurassic World movie first hit back in January of 2024, when it was revealed that the screenplay had already been written by original Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp, returning to the franchise for the first time since The Lost World: Jurassic Park. The project was assembled in a mad scramble after that, with Godzilla and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story director Gareth Edwards ending up at the helm. This new Jurassic World movie won’t be featuring any returning lead characters from the previous Jurassic Park / Jurassic World movies, so describing it as a “Rebirth” could be accurate. The characters played by Sam Neill, Jeff Goldblum, and Laura Dern are out, as are the ones played by Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard.

The new characters are played by the likes of Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton), Mahershala Ali (Green Book), Rupert Friend (Obi-Wan Kenobi), and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (The Lincoln Lawyer) – all of whom had their roles directly offered to them. Luna Blaise (Manifest), on the other hand, had to (according to Deadline) “beat out a number of actors” to land her role. David Iacono of The Summer I Turned Pretty, child actress Audrina Miranda, Philippine Velge (Station Eleven), Ed Skrein (Deadpool), and Béchir Sylvain (Diarra from Detroit) are also in the cast… along with a bunch of hungry dinosaurs.

Glen Powell (Top Gun: Maverick) was also offered a role, but he turned it down because he felt his presence in the movie wouldn’t help it. He did say that the script is great, though.

Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley are producing the film for Kennedy/Marshall. Steven Spielberg is executive producing through Amblin Entertainment. Universal’s executive vp of production development Sara Scott and creative executive Jacqueline Garell are overseeing the project for the studio. 

Here’s what we’ve previously heard about the plot: Jurassic World Rebirth sees an intrepid team racing to secure DNA samples from the three most colossal creatures across land, sea and air. Five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, the planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived. The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind. Johansson’s character is Zora Bennett, “a skilled covert operations expert contracted to lead a team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world’s three most massive dinosaurs. When Zora’s operation intersects with a civilian family whose boating expedition was capsized by marauding aquatic dinos, they all find themselves stranded on an island where they come face-to-face with a sinister, shocking discovery that’s been hidden from the world for decades.” Bailey is playing paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis, with Ali as Zora’s most trusted team leader, Duncan Kincaid. 

Speaking with Vanity Fair, Marshall said the goal with this new movie was to make the dinosaurs feel dangerous again. “You’re in a new place, you don’t know what’s around the corner. You’ve got a different jungle, you’ve got more water, you’ve got higher cliffs. There’s a little bit of everything that’s scary.” He added that some of the dinosaurs that exist in this setting, an island near the equator that was once home to first Jurassic Park’s research lab, are “the dinosaurs that didn’t work. There’s some mutations in there. They’re all based on real dinosaur research, but they look a little different.“

For the design of a mutant dinosaur we’ll be seeing in the trailer, Edwards drew inspiration from Alien, Return of the Jedi, and, of course, the original Jurassic Park. He said, “Some Rancor went in there, some H.R. Giger went in there, a little T. rex went in there…” He went on to say that he feels “Jurassic Park is a horror film in the witness protection program. Most people don’t think of it like that. We all went to see it as kids. But I was scared shitless, to be honest, when I was at the cinema watching the T. rex attack. It’s one of the most well-directed scenes in cinema history, so the bar’s really high to come on board and try and do this.“

Koepp has previously teased that a sequence from Michael Crichton’s novel Jurassic Park that didn’t fit into the original movie has made its way into Jurassic World Rebirth, and Marshall confirmed that it is, as fans have speculated, a sequence in which characters “attempt to drift through a lagoon in a rubber raft without waking a slumbering Tyrannosaurus rex. They don’t succeed, and end up paddling for their lives.” Koepp is also the one who came up with the story idea that “dinosaurs (are) passé now. People were tired of them. They were an inconvenience. People weren’t going to museums to see them or to petting zoos. They were just in the way. And the climate was not conducive to their survival, so they were starting to pass away and get sick. But there was one area around the equator that had the perfect climate and temperature and environment for them. … A company that [Rupert Friend’s character] represents discovers a way to cure heart disease, but you need the DNA from the three largest dinosaurs on land, sea, and air. Those three dinosaurs exist on this island where they were first created, but it’s a no-go zone.“

While bringing the concept to the screen, Edwards made sure to keep the works of Spielberg in mind. “To me, it’s like a heist movie that meets all the films of Steven Spielberg I loved growing up. The three films we were orbiting were Jaws, Indiana Jones, and the awe and wonder of the original Jurassic.” The Indiana Jones inspiration really comes through in a sequel where Bailey’s Dr. Loomis is trying to extract fluid from the eggs of flying dinosaurs. In the script, this sequence was set in a cave on a cliff. Edwards changed the setting: “The original script just referenced the nest in a cliff and I really felt like we’re in Central America, and I like the idea that there was an old civilization here at one point. (The setting became) an Inca-style old temple that had been abandoned hundreds of thousands of years ago. Inevitably, the second you do that, you’re suddenly going, ‘This is very Indiana Jones.’”

For more quotes and character information, click over to the Vanity Fair link.

Does Jurassic World Rebirth sound interesting to you? Take a look at the new images, then let us know by leaving a comment below.

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There’s a new entry in the Jurassic Park / Jurassic World franchise heading our way, with Jurassic World Rebirth set to reach theatres on July 2, 2025 – and the first bit of footage has dropped online today! This few seconds of footage was unveiled to let us know that the first trailer for Jurassic World Rebirth will be released this Wednesday, and you can check out the brief tease in the embed at the bottom of this article.

News of the new Jurassic World movie first hit back in January of 2024, when it was revealed that the screenplay had already been written by original Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp, returning to the franchise for the first time since The Lost World: Jurassic Park. The project was assembled in a mad scramble after that, with Godzilla and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story director Gareth Edwards ending up at the helm. This new Jurassic World movie won’t be featuring any returning lead characters from the previous Jurassic Park / Jurassic World movies, so describing it as a “Rebirth” could be accurate. The characters played by Sam Neill, Jeff Goldblum, and Laura Dern are out, as are the ones played by Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard.

The new characters are played by the likes of Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton), Mahershala Ali (Green Book), Rupert Friend (Obi-Wan Kenobi), and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (The Lincoln Lawyer) – all of whom had their roles directly offered to them. Luna Blaise (Manifest), on the other hand, had to (according to Deadline) “beat out a number of actors” to land her role. David Iacono of The Summer I Turned Pretty, child actress Audrina Miranda, Philippine Velge (Station Eleven), Ed Skrein (Deadpool), and Béchir Sylvain (Diarra from Detroit) are also in the cast… along with a bunch of hungry dinosaurs.

Glen Powell (Top Gun: Maverick) was also offered a role, but he turned it down because he felt his presence in the movie wouldn’t help it. He did say that the script is great, though.

Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley are producing the film for Kennedy/Marshall. Steven Spielberg is executive producing through Amblin Entertainment. Universal’s executive vp of production development Sara Scott and creative executive Jacqueline Garell are overseeing the project for the studio. 

Here’s what we know about the plot now: Jurassic World Rebirth sees an intrepid team racing to secure DNA samples from the three most colossal creatures across land, sea and air. Five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, the planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived. The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind.

Johansson’s character is Zora Bennett, “a skilled covert operations expert contracted to lead a team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world’s three most massive dinosaurs. When Zora’s operation intersects with a civilian family whose boating expedition was capsized by marauding aquatic dinos, they all find themselves stranded on an island where they come face-to-face with a sinister, shocking discovery that’s been hidden from the world for decades.” Bailey is playing paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis, with Ali as Zora’s most trusted team leader, Duncan Kincaid. 

Are you looking forward to Jurassic World Rebirth? Take a look at this quick glimpse of footage, then let us know by leaving a comment below.

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There’s a new entry in the Jurassic Park / Jurassic World franchise heading our way, with Jurassic World Rebirth set to reach theatres on July 2, 2025 – and this one has a screenplay by original Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp, returning to the franchise for the first time since The Lost World: Jurassic Park. Koepp has previously said that his goal with the script was to get the franchise back to the tone of the original Jurassic Park, and during a new interview with Variety, he revealed that he has even managed to work a sequence from Michael Crichton’s Jurassic Park novel into the new movie!

News of the new Jurassic World movie first hit back in January of 2024, when it was revealed that the screenplay had already been written. The project was assembled in a mad scramble after that, with Godzilla and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story director Gareth Edwards ending up at the helm. This new Jurassic World movie won’t be featuring any returning lead characters from the previous Jurassic Park / Jurassic World movies, so describing it as a “Rebirth” could be accurate. The characters played by Sam Neill, Jeff Goldblum, and Laura Dern are out, as are the ones played by Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard.

The new characters are played by the likes of Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton), Mahershala Ali (Green Book), Rupert Friend (Obi-Wan Kenobi), and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (The Lincoln Lawyer) – all of whom had their roles directly offered to them. Luna Blaise (Manifest), on the other hand, had to (according to Deadline) “beat out a number of actors” to land her role. David Iacono of The Summer I Turned Pretty, child actress Audrina Miranda, Philippine Velge (Station Eleven), Ed Skrein (Deadpool), and Béchir Sylvain (Diarra from Detroit) are also in the cast… along with a bunch of hungry dinosaurs.

Glen Powell (Top Gun: Maverick) was also offered a role, but he turned it down because he felt his presence in the movie wouldn’t help it. He did say that the script is great, though.

Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley are producing the film for Kennedy/Marshall. Steven Spielberg is executive producing through Amblin Entertainment. Universal’s executive vp of production development Sara Scott and creative executive Jacqueline Garell are overseeing the project for the studio. 

Here’s what we know about the plot now: Jurassic World Rebirth sees an intrepid team racing to secure DNA samples from the three most colossal creatures across land, sea and air. Five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, the planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived. The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind.

Johansson’s character is Zora Bennett, “a skilled covert operations expert contracted to lead a team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world’s three most massive dinosaurs. When Zora’s operation intersects with a civilian family whose boating expedition was capsized by marauding aquatic dinos, they all find themselves stranded on an island where they come face-to-face with a sinister, shocking discovery that’s been hidden from the world for decades.” Bailey is playing paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis, with Ali as Zora’s most trusted team leader, Duncan Kincaid. 

Koepp told Variety, “The first two movies were two of my favorite experiences ever. And Steven said, ‘What about starting over? Let’s try something all new.’ I said, ‘Oh, that’s a cool idea. What if blah, blah, blah,’ and then I threw an idea back. That’s it. It caught. You do that all the time with your friends and collaborators: throw ideas back and forth. And sometimes they catch, usually they don’t. There is pressure because it’s going to cost a lot of money and there are going to be big expectations and blah, blah, blah. But there was no pressure at first — just the pursuit of our ideas.” Koepp was working from novels written by Crichton on the first two movies, and said, “I reread the two novels to get myself back in that mode though. We did take some things from them. There was a sequence from the first novel that we’d always wanted in the original movie, but didn’t have room for. We were like, ‘Hey, we get to use that now.’ But just to get back in that head space 30 years later — is it still fun? And the answer is yes, it still really is. Dinosaurs are still fun.“

What sequence from Michael Crichton’s Jurassic Park novel do you think has made its way into Jurassic World Rebirth? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

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While three years between sequels isn’t unusual, the Jurassic World series from Colin Trevorrow that starred Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard had concluded its run in 2022 and there would usually be some time to let a franchise rest before a new continuity or reboot began to take shape. However, Universal has already signed, sealed, and is delivering a new chapter in the series spearheaded by Steven Spielberg’s original cultural phenomenon.

The official Jurassic World social media page has released a brand new look at Jurassic World Rebirth. In the new image, the film’s stars, Scarlett Johansson and Jonathan Bailey, are extracting from an egg in a dinosaur nest, which is in a very temple-looking location. Could this also be a nod to Spielberg’s other cinematic classic, Indiana Jones? Check the new image out below!

While Dominion was panned by critics and audiences alike, Jurassic World Rebirth screenwriter David Koepp (who co-wrote the original movie) said Spielberg and himself were interested in returning to the tone of Jurassic Park. “I hope people like the movie because the series tended to change after three, and it felt like, ‘Okay, so let’s change our tone.’ Steven [Spielberg] and I were interested in a tone that was maybe more akin to the very first movie,” Koepp said. “I saw it early on as a mission movie. I like things that are driven by bottles, by containment, you know?“

Koepp continued, “And so, developing a limited team and a thing that they have to accomplish – that was all really fun. And it was just fun to return to that world of great adventure backed by real science and write some cool new characters. You don’t often get a chance to have a blank slate and say, ‘What do you want to do?’… There were no franchise expectations other than dinosaurs.“

Jurassic World Rebirth takes place five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, as the planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. “Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived,” reads the official description. “The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind.“

Scarlett Johansson stars as Zora Bennett, a skilled covert operations expert who is “contracted to lead a skilled team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world’s three most massive dinosaurs. When Zora’s operation intersects with a civilian family whose boating expedition was capsized by marauding aquatic dinos, they all find themselves stranded on an island where they come face-to-face with a sinister, shocking discovery that’s been hidden from the world for decades.” The film also stars Jonathan Bailey, Mahershala Ali, Rupert Friend, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Luna Blaise, and David Iacono. Gareth Edwards directed the film, which is slated to hit theaters on July 2.

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Universal Pictures surprised us back in January when they announced that not only was a new entry in the Jurassic Park and Jurassic World franchise in the works, but the screenplay was already finished and the project was aiming for a 2025 theatrical release. July 2, 2025, to be exact. This new movie is called Jurassic World Rebirth, and it was assembled in a mad scramble so it can stay on track to reach theatres next July. Details have been kept under wraps so far, but Universal just revealed some plot and character information the other day, so now it’s time for us to put together a list of Everything We Know About Jurassic World Rebirth:

PLOT

One of the most interesting things about this new Jurassic movie is the fact that it boasts a script written by original Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp, returning to the franchise for the first time since The Lost World: Jurassic Park. After sitting out the last four movies, Koepp has come back to tell the following story: Five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, the planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived. The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind. This action-packed new chapter in the franchise sees an intrepid team racing to secure DNA samples from the three most colossal creatures across land, sea and air.

To make sure they get the dinosaur action just right, the studio has hired paleontologist and evolutionary biologist Steve Brusatte to be the dinosaur expert consultant on the film. That’s a job Brusatte also had on the previous movie, where he was consultant alongside paleontologist Jack Horner, who has been a consultant on all six Jurassic movies to date. It’s not clear if Horner is back for this one, or if he has fully passed the torch to Brusatte.

Speaking on The Discourse podcast, Koepp said, “I hope people like the movie because the series tended to change after three, and it felt like, ‘Okay, so let’s change our tone.’ Steven [Spielberg] and I were interested in a tone that was maybe more akin to the very first movie. I saw it early on as a mission movie. I like things that are driven by bottles, by containment, you know? And so, developing a limited team and a thing that they have to accomplish – that was all really fun. And it was just fun to return to that world of great adventure backed by real science and write some cool new characters. You don’t often get a chance to have a blank slate and say, ‘What do you want to do?’ There were no franchise expectations other than dinosaurs.“

Koepp told Variety, “The first two movies were two of my favorite experiences ever. And Steven said, ‘What about starting over? Let’s try something all new.’ I said, ‘Oh, that’s a cool idea. What if blah, blah, blah,’ and then I threw an idea back. That’s it. It caught. You do that all the time with your friends and collaborators: throw ideas back and forth. And sometimes they catch, usually they don’t. There is pressure because it’s going to cost a lot of money and there are going to be big expectations and blah, blah, blah. But there was no pressure at first — just the pursuit of our ideas.” Koepp was working from novels written by Michael Crichton on the first two movies, and said, “I reread the two novels to get myself back in that mode though. We did take some things from them. There was a sequence from the first novel that we’d always wanted in the original movie, but didn’t have room for. We were like, ‘Hey, we get to use that now.’ But just to get back in that head space 30 years later — is it still fun? And the answer is yes, it still really is. Dinosaurs are still fun.“

DIRECTOR

The two biggest franchises at Universal are the Jurassic movies and the Fast & Furious series – so it makes sense that when the studio needed to get a director attached to Jurassic World Rebirth as quickly as possible, they first turned to a filmmaker with Fast & Furious experience: David Leitch, who directed the Fast & Furious spin-off Hobbs & Shaw for them. Leitch also worked with Universal on The Fall Guy, which was about to be released when they started talking to him about making their latest dinosaur movie. But the deal was only in the “early negotiations” phase when Leitch and Universal came to realize they had different ideas about the direction of the project. So Leitch stepped away and less than two weeks later Universal found a different director who has experience with both blockbusters and giant creatures: Gareth Edwards, the director of Monsters, Godzilla, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, and The Creator.

Edwards signed on at the end of February, with filming set to begin at the start of June.

Edwards told Empire, “It goes back to what I loved about the original, with an embarrassment of riches of different set-piece-type scenarios and tense, fun action moments. There were a lot of opportunities as a filmmaker to have a lot of fun and try and play games with the audience.” The movie will be packed with the dinosaurs movie-goers are hoping to see, as “there are certain dinosaurs it would be a crime against cinema not to include.” 

After filming had wrapped, Edwards told Entertainment Weekly about the filming locations: “I’m allowed to say this now that we’re on the other side of it, but we shot in rivers and these mangrove swamps. When we were scouting them, we saw poisonous water snakes, massive ones that we had to catch. We kept it quiet from the actors as they spent a whole day wading through the same area. And there were giant spiders that were poisonous and stuff on the edge of the trees. You just wouldn’t point them out if you saw them. Just keep going!“

CAST

This new Jurassic World movie won’t be featuring any returning lead characters from the previous Jurassic Park / Jurassic World movies. The characters played by Sam Neill, Jeff Goldblum, and Laura Dern are out, as are the ones played by Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard. But this project didn’t have time for an extended casting process, so Edwards and Universal started reaching out to known names and making them offers. Colman Domingo (Fear the Walking Dead) and Dev Patel (Monkey Man) were said to be on the wish list at one point, but they didn’t end up being cast. Glen Powell (Twisters) was offered a role, but turned it down, saying, “Jurassic is one of my favorite movies. It’s one of the things I’ve wanted to do my whole life. I’m not doing that movie because I read the script and I immediately was like, my presence in this movie doesn’t help it. And the script’s great. The movie’s going to kill. It’s not about that. It’s about choosing where you’re going to make an audience happy and where you’re going to make yourself happy.“

Actors who did accept offers include Scarlett Johansson (The Avengers), Mahershala Ali (Green Book), Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton), Rupert Friend (Obi-Wan Kenobi), and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (The Lincoln Lawyer). Luna Blaise (Manifest), on the other hand, did have to (according to Deadline) “beat out a number of actors” to land her role. David Iacono of The Summer I Turned Pretty, child actress Audrina Miranda, Philippine Velge (Station Eleven), Béchir Sylvain (Diarra from Detroit), and Ed Skrein (Deadpool) are also in the cast.

Speaking to Variety, Johansson said she took the job because, “I am an enormous Jurassic Park fan. It is one of the first movies I remember seeing in theaters. I remember it so vividly. It was life-changing and mind-blowing. I cannot express how excited I am. The script is so incredible. David Koepp wrote it and returned after 30 years to write it and he’s so passionate about it. I’ve been trying to get into this franchise in any possible way for over 10 years. I’m like, ‘I’ll die in the first five minutes! I can get eaten by whatever! I’ll do the craft service!’ I’ll do anything for it. The fact that it’s happened in this way at this time just is actually unbelievable.” Bailey told V Magazine, “I’m on a really long holiday in the jungle, pretending to run away from fake dinosaurs… Um, no, I’m filming Jurassic Park. I can say that it’s written by David Koepp, who wrote the original. It feels like it’s in ultimate hands to bring it back to what the original achieved. (Jurassic Park) was the first film I went to see with my whole family, and I was way too young, I was terrified.“

Jurassic franchise veteran Jeff Goldblum, who worked with Johansson on Wes Anderson’s Asteroid City, gave her this piece of advice: “Don’t get eaten, unless you want to. I love you.“

The director took the opportunity to build up Johansson’s character while talking to Empire, saying, “She’s looking for meaning in her life after leaving the military, and this opportunity comes along where [after it] basically she’d never have to work again. But through that journey, she starts to question the ethical rights and wrongs of what they’re doing.“

CHARACTERS

A press release sent out by Universal revealed that Johansson plays “skilled covert operations expert Zora Bennett, contracted to lead a skilled team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world’s three most massive dinosaurs. When Zora’s operation intersects with a civilian family whose boating expedition was capsized by marauding aquatic dinos, they all find themselves stranded on an island where they come face-to-face with a sinister, shocking discovery that’s been hidden from the world for decades.”

Ali’s character is Duncan Kincaid, Zora’s most trusted team leader. Bailey is playing paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis, with Friend as Big Pharma representative Martin Krebs and Garcia-Rulfo as Reuben Delgado, the father of the shipwrecked civilian family. Blaise, Iacono, and Miranda play Reuben’s family, with Velge, Sylvain, and Skrein playing members of Zora and Krebs’ crews.

PRODUCTION

Jurassic World Rebirth started filming in Thailand on June 13th and the production stayed there through July 16th, with locations including Bangkok, Trang, Phang Nga, Phuket, Chiang Mai and the Huai To Waterfall, which is within the Khao Phanom Bencha National Park in Krabi province. Filming at the waterfall is believed to have taken a full week. Outside of Thailand, the movie has been filming at studios in Malta and the U.K. Through equipment rentals, accommodation, venue hire, transportation, and catering services, the production was expected to bring $18 million of economic benefit to Thailand. It was also expected to seek local subsidy through Thailand’s 20% production spending rebate system. That system is open to international productions that spend more than $2.75 million in the country.

The film is being produced by Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley, both longtime Jurassic franchise producers. They also produced this summer’s blockbuster Twisters together. Steven Spielberg, Denis L. Stewart, and Jim Spencer serve as executive producers. At the end of September, Marshall took to Instagram to announce that production has wrapped:

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A post shared by Frank Marshall (@ledoctor)

The press release for this film opens with the line, “A new era is born.” It goes on to say that the movie will evolve the series “in an ingenious new direction.” We’ll get to see exactly what that direction is next summer.

PROMOS

To let us know that the first trailer for Jurassic World Rebirth would be released on February 5th, Universal unveiled this quick glimpse of footage on February 3rd:

The post Everything We Know About Jurassic World Rebirth appeared first on JoBlo.

With 2024 coming to a close, it’s time to start looking to the future for our cinema needs. What does the year hold in store for us cinephiles? While 2024 held some surprise hits, giant blockbusters, and small films that could, it’s looking like 2025 movie releases will hold more of the same. We can hope that the good fortune that Hollywood has brought us will continue into the new year and keep theater attendance up. Here’s our 2025 Movie Preview:

Den Of Thieves: Pantera – January 10

Gerard Butler is back chasing down diamond thieves on the streets of Europe. He stumbles across the planning of the largest diamond heist ever planned. If you liked the first movie, then this will probably be more of the same. I’m personally happy that Gerard Butler is making some fun B-movie action films like back in the day. Plane was fun, and I’m excited to see these types of films at the theater again.

Better Man – January 10

A biopic about UK pop star Robbie Williams as we see his childhood all the way through his superstardom. Robbie will be playing himself, but how do you do that without it being weird? What if you make it so he’s a chimp? Sure. With Pharrell releasing his biopic as a Lego movie and now Robbie Williams replacing himself with a CGI chimp it seems biopics are really trying to gain quirk appeal.

Back In Action – January 17

Cameron Diaz is coming out of retirement and teaming up with Jamie Foxx for this Netflix original film. They play former CIA agents who are pulled back in when their identities are exposed. While I’m glad to see Diaz back on screen after a decade away, it’s odd that this generic spy action movie did it. Maybe just the idea of being in a movie with Jamie Foxx again was enough.

Star Trek: Section 31 – January 24

This direct to Paramount+ film is a spin off from Star Trek: Discovery starring Michelle Yeoh as her character Philippa Georgiou. This was originally planned as a series, but after COVID-19 delays, it was scrapped. Later they revived the idea for an original movie. Star Trek has always been a beloved franchise but with new movies going direct to streaming, will we ever see them return to the big screen?

Bridget Jones: Mad About The Boy – February 13

For the first time in nine years, Bridget Jones is back! Only this time, it will be on Peacock in the United States and then in theaters everywhere else in the world. Seems backwards but okay. Bridget Jones is now a single mom and trying to figure out how that works when you’re trying to get back into the dating pool. Renee Zellweger and Hugh Grant return, along with some other familiar faces. Are we past the Bridget Jones fandom, or is there still more life in this franchise?

Captain America: Brave New World – February 14

After the events of Falcon And The Winter Soldier, Anthony Mackie is donning the shield as the new Captain America. Harrison Ford steps in for the late William Hurt as the new President Ross, who has a big red secret to share. Marvel only had one release last summer, and it seemed to work really well for them. Let’s see if something without Hugh Jackman’s claws still registers for Marvel fans.

Mickey 17 – March 7

The new film from Bong Joon-ho sees Robert Pattinson sent on a space mission because he is seen as expendable. With technology, he can be regenerated if something goes wrong. This time, something goes wrong, and he begins to experience an existential crisis. This darkly comedic film looks like a good time as we see Mickey die in numerous different ways and still have to get up to go to work the next day.

Black Bag – March 14

Steven Soderberg’s spy thriller is coming out with no details on the plot. With a cast that includes Michael Fassbender, Cate Blanchett, and Pierce Brosnan, you can bet lots of people will be interested in checking it out. Soderberg has always had an interesting take on just about any film he releases, and this will be no different.

Snow White – March 21

Disney continues its trend of doing live-action remakes of its old animated films. This one caused a stir when it was announced, as people seemed divided on how to handle the seven dwarfs aspect of the film. Ultimately, the dwarves will be completely CGI. It will be interesting to see how this plays in a modern culture. Expect some new songs, and Gal Gadot will be playing the evil queen, which is inspired casting compared to the look of the original character.

A Minecraft Movie – April 4

With Super Mario Bros. and the Sonic movies being big hits, it’s no surprise that the hugely popular game Minecraft would be getting its own movie. Jack Black once again jumps on board to play Steve, the generic character most players take control of when booting up Minecraft. Jason Mamoa, Jennifer Coolidge, and Kate McKinnon round out the cast as random characters are pulled into the cubic world and need the help of an expert crafter to get home. Seems very Jumanji.

The Accountant 2 – April 25

I don’t think anyone saw this sequel coming. In the first film, Ben Affleck played a neuro-divergent accountant who had a side job as a hitman. The film was a modest hit but nothing that would seem to warrant a sequel. Some other familiar faces from the first one return.

Thunderbolts* – May 2

The second of Marvel’s offerings this year sees a bunch of cast-off characters from previous Marvel films being rounded up for a new agency. Yelena will be leading the team of previous supervillains who are now taking jobs for the government. Of course, this will be complicated by a lot of in-fighting and some unexpected speedbumps. The trailer makes this look like a lot of fun so here’s hoping it will give MCU fans some laughs while providing some great action scenes.

Lilo & Stitch – May 23

This is the second of Disney’s live-action remakes. Stitch crash-lands on Earth and is adopted by a young girl. Hijinks ensue as others come looking for him. The original had a great sense of humor, and the trailers showing Stitch invading other Disney properties were great. I have no idea if this will translate well into live-action, but kids will probably love it.

Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning – May 23

This was originally titled Dead Reckoning Part II, but after the last film underperformed, the title was quickly changed. It will continue the storyline from the last film, and we see Ethan Hunt trying to stop the deadly AI from causing worldwide chaos. Of course in order to shut it down, they have to make their way to the submarine that is crashed on the ocean floor.

Karate Kid: Legends – May 30

The franchise returns to the big screen as we see Daniel from the original and Mr. Han from the 2010 “remake” join forces to mentor a new student. It’s a strange crossing of the streams which retcons the remake into being set in the same continuity. With Cobra Kai just ending when this hits theaters, will fans even care enough to go check it out? Fans of the original movie got their nostalgia fix with the series. Are there people who have nostalgia for the 2010 movie?

From The World Of John Wick: Ballerina – June 6

The spin-off of the John Wick films hits the big screen. We were introduced to the Ballerinas in John Wick 3. Now they get a film all their own while Keanu Reeves will still make an appearance since this is set during that time period. Ana de Armas takes over the role of Eve as she looks to get revenge on the people who killed her family. The intricate world of John Wick is fascinating to explore, and this gives us a chance to see even more of it.

Elio – June 13

An animated film from Disney that follows Elio. He’s a young space fanatic who gets tasked with saving the universe. They have been struggling to come up with animated films that really stick with audiences that aren’t already established Pixar properties. The shine of the early Pixar films has really dimmed after Disney bought them. Hopefully we can see Disney regain its footing with animated films like we used to have.

How To Train Your Dragon – June 13

Dreamworks seems to be taking a cue from Disney and remaking some of their more popular animated properties. We’re getting another round of dragons as we see the first meeting of Hiccup and Toothless. Again. Not sure if this trend will ever end, but at least Dreamworks doesn’t have as deep of a catalog as Disney. When can we expect to see a live-action Kung Fu Panda?

Jurassic World: Rebirth – July 2

Scarlett Johanssen is taking the lead role this time around. No one seems to have learned any lesson about bringing dinosaurs back to life. This time it looks like explorers have to go in to get DNA samples from some prehistoric animals to help cure a disease. Universal really just wants to see if there is any juice left to squeeze out of this fruit. It may be time to let it sleep for a few decades before heading back in.

Superman – July 11

James Gunn takes his stab at the Man of Steel as the DC Universe reboots itself on-screen once again. Reports are that Gunn held an early screening for WB execs and that it did not go well. That could be internet fodder, but it doesn’t instill a lot of hope for the new version of the DCU. With the DC shows on the CW just wrapping up, we’ll have to see if Gunn’s Superman will connect with comic fans. The recent trailer seemed to gain a lot of views very quickly, so we at least know that fans are interested.

The Smurfs Movie – July 18

Those magical little blue creatures will grace theater screens once again. This time, the film will be fully animated and musical. Paramount/Nickelodeon will take on the film, and it seems to be inspired by the popularity of the Troll movies. Rhianna will voice Smurfette and be joined by Nick Offerman, John Goodman, Kurt Russell, Dan Levy, and Hannah Waddingham.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps – July 25

Marvel’s first family finally makes their way into the MCU. While they have been on-screen before as part of Fox’s Marvel movies, this time, we’ll see what the MCU has in store for the group. Marvel’s third film in six months will really test if audiences are in superhero fatigue or not. The early footage shown at Comicon seems fun, so hopefully, it will bring something new.

Naked Gun – August 1

Liam Neeson is hoping to try something drastically different than we’ve seen from him before. He has some big shoes to fill, as Leslie Nielsen based the whole second half of his career on the original Naked Gun. It will be hard to see anyone else trying to play that role. Plus, does that type of comedy have a place anymore?

Freakier Friday – August 8

Disney’s calendar of releases this year is crazy, as we see the reteaming of Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan. The last film was a remake of an old Disney Classic. Now, twenty-one years later, we are getting a sequel. Expect more body-swapping jokes as the Lindsay Lohan resurgence seems to be taking shape. She’s been on an upswing lately, and hopefully, we can see her get a victory lap as she has matured.

Nobody 2 – August 15

Somehow, Bob Odenkirk became an action star after starring in Nobody back in 2021. Now, we get to see some more middle-aged dad action as he returns for this sequel. The first movie really worked to show what appears to be an ordinary man who decides to get back into a life he left a long time ago. Now that we have seen him for what he really is, here’s hoping for more action and more Christopher Lloyd running around with a shotgun.

Downton Abbey 3 – September 12

The third film spin-off of the popular period drama. Many of the cast return to once again play their characters, showing the divide between the upper class and the working class. This drama captivated audiences when it first premiered, and both previous films have been big hits. It only makes sense to keep it going with another film.

Tron: Ares – October 10

We’re traveling back into the world of Tron. Jeff Bridges is back, along with a slew of other familiar faces like Jodie Turner-Smith, Evan Peters, and Jared Leto. This time, a program is sent from the digital world to the real world. Each Tron film so far has pushed the boundaries in terms of special effects and technical marvels. Let’s see what they come up with this time.

Mortal Kombat 2 – October 24

We’re heading back to the arcade, so get your quarters ready. The reboot of the Mortal Kombat franchise continues as our heroes are heading back to Outland to continue the fight for all existence. The last film was released during the pandemic, so a true gauge of the popularity is hard to judge, but audiences seem to have a positive response. During the initial film franchise run, the second entry pushed it off a cliff. We can hope they learned their lesson.

Now You See Me 3 – November 14

Another entry into the magic mystery franchise is in the pipeline. All of our sleight-of-hand artists are returning, but no plot has been released so far. The previous movies have gained an audience through their unique use of stage magic and illusions to foil their adversaries. It is a fun and interesting way of doing a mystery based action film. If it lives up to the previous entries, then audiences should leave the theater happy.

Wicked: For Good – November 21

The second part of the recent smash hit. Those who haven’t seen the Broadway play or read the book will get to see how the story ends. I expect more fantastic songs, some great visuals, and more Oz. We all need all the Oz we can get. Let’s all get ready to defy gravity once again.

Zootopia 2 – November 26

Disney has quite the release schedule this year, and we’re not even done yet. Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde are teaming up to solve a wild case that could change their entire lives. It will be fun to travel back into the world of Zootopia and see where the characters are. It looks like more of the same fun we had in the last film.

Avatar: Fire And Ash – December 19

It’s time to head back to Pandora. Last time James Cameron dealt with water motifs and explored more of the world. Looks like we’ll be dealing with fire this time around. While the films seem to always be a wonder of motion capture and CGI, it would be great to see Cameron go back to other projects before his film career comes to an end. We can always hope.

The SpongeBob Movie: Search For SquarePants – December 19

Hey Kids! SpongeBob is back with another movie. This time, he will explore the depths of the ocean to deal with the ghost of the Flying Dutchman. This franchise just keeps engaging generation after generation. At this point, The Simpsons might be about the only animated franchise that has lasted longer. As long as fans keep checking out the movies, the more they will keep making.

What 2025 movie releases are you looking forward to? Let us know in the comments. And, if you’re looking for more info on horror releases, check out our horror movie preview HERE!

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Scarlett Johansson, Jonathan Bailey, Mahershala Ali, and Rupert Friend may never know how close to death they were while shooting Jurassic World Rebirth. Well, they will after reading Entertainment Weekly‘s latest feature about the anticipated Jurassic World standalone sequel. It turns out there were things more dangerous than dinosaurs on the set of Edwards’s new film, and after reading about them, my skin is still crawling.

“I’m allowed to say this now that we’re on the other side of it, but we shot in rivers and these mangrove swamps,” Edwards told Entertainment Weekly about filming Jurassic World Rebirth. “When we were scouting them, we saw poisonous water snakes, massive ones that we had to catch. We kept it quiet from the actors as they spent a whole day wading through the same area. And there were giant spiders that were poisonous and stuff on the edge of the trees. You just wouldn’t point them out if you saw them. Just keep going!”

Um, what? How is this okay? You wouldn’t catch my ass swimming with poisonous snakes while avoiding giant spiders falling from trees. No, sir!

One of the most interesting things about this new Jurassic movie is that it boasts a script written by original Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp, who is returning to the franchise for the first time since The Lost World: Jurassic Park. After sitting out the last four movies, Koepp has come back to tell the following story: Five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, the planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling where they once thrived. The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind. This action-packed new chapter in the franchise sees an intrepid team racing to secure DNA samples from the three most colossal creatures across land, sea, and air.

Alongside Edwards’s horrifying admission about the Jurassic World Rebirth set, EW unleashed a batch of new images from the upcoming film. In the photos, Scarlett Johansson and Jonathan Bailey science the sh*t out of an escalating situation. Like any other Jurassic movie, things inevitably go sideways, forcing our characters to run for their lives from sharp teeth and killer survival instincts. The gallery also includes a photo of Rupert Friend, Mahershala Ali, and Bechir Sylvain smiling from ear to ear. I assume they’re marveling at a dinosaur before that tall grass part, revealing a hungry predator or two. The new photos feature shades of Gareth Edwards’s signature style and visuals, with everything looking relatively clean despite the area’s harsh conditions.

“Jurassic Park did lead the way with computer graphics, but I feel like we got lost along the way with the arms race to a spectacle,” Edwards says about returning to basics for Rebirth. “Jurassic actually only had just a few dozen VFX shots in it, and it’s such a powerful film. So, it was trying to go back to all those tricks and ideas that tease the audience, that creates suspense and tension that get you on the edge of your seat. I just wanted to create that feeling I had when I was young of being in awe of these things.”

On a scale of 1 to 10, how excited are you about Jurassic World Rebirth? Let us know in the comments section below.

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Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park is a classic. Over the years, the subsequent sequels have attempted to tap into what made the first one so special, and Jurassic World Rebirth will be no exception. While speaking on The Discourse podcast, Jurassic World Rebirth screenwriter David Koepp (who co-wrote the original movie) said Spielberg and himself were interested in returning to the tone of Jurassic Park.

“I hope people like the movie because the series tended to change after three, and it felt like, ‘Okay, so let’s change our tone.’ Steven [Spielberg] and I were interested in a tone that was maybe more akin to the very first movie,” Koepp said. “I saw it early on as a mission movie. I like things that are driven by bottles, by containment, you know?“

Koepp continued, “And so, developing a limited team and a thing that they have to accomplish – that was all really fun. And it was just fun to return to that world of great adventure backed by real science and write some cool new characters. You don’t often get a chance to have a blank slate and say, ‘What do you want to do?’… There were no franchise expectations other than dinosaurs.“

Jurassic World Rebirth takes place five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, as the planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. “Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived,” reads the official description. “The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind.“

Scarlett Johansson stars as Zora Bennett, a skilled covert operations expert who is “contracted to lead a skilled team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world’s three most massive dinosaurs. When Zora’s operation intersects with a civilian family whose boating expedition was capsized by marauding aquatic dinos, they all find themselves stranded on an island where they come face-to-face with a sinister, shocking discovery that’s been hidden from the world for decades.” The film also stars Jonathan Bailey, Mahershala Ali, Rupert Friend, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Luna Blaise, and David Iacono. Gareth Edwards directed the film, which is slated to hit theaters on July 2, 2025.

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There’s a new entry in the Jurassic Park / Jurassic World franchise heading our way, with Jurassic World Rebirth set to reach theatres on July 2, 2025 – and during an interview with Empire, director Gareth Edwards said that the new movie goes back to what he loved about the original Jurassic Park.

News of the new Jurassic World movie first hit back in January, when it was revealed that the screenplay – by original Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp, returning to the franchise for the first time since The Lost World: Jurassic Park – had already been written. The project was assembled in a mad scramble after that, with Godzilla and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story director Gareth Edwards ending up at the helm. This new Jurassic World movie won’t be featuring any returning lead characters from the previous Jurassic Park / Jurassic World movies, so describing it as a “Rebirth” could be accurate. The characters played by Sam Neill, Jeff Goldblum, and Laura Dern are out, as are the ones played by Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard. The new characters are played by the likes of Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton), Mahershala Ali (Green Book), Rupert Friend (Obi-Wan Kenobi), and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (The Lincoln Lawyer) – all of whom had their roles directly offered to them. Luna Blaise (Manifest), on the other hand, had to (according to Deadline) “beat out a number of actors” to land her role. David Iacono of The Summer I Turned Pretty, child actress Audrina Miranda, Philippine Velge (Station Eleven), Ed Skrein (Deadpool), and Béchir Sylvain (Diarra from Detroit) are also in the cast… along with a bunch of hungry dinosaurs.

Glen Powell (Top Gun: Maverick) was also offered a role, but he turned it down because he felt his presence in the movie wouldn’t help it. He did say that the script is great, though.

Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley are producing the film for Kennedy/Marshall. Steven Spielberg is executive producing through Amblin Entertainment. Universal’s executive vp of production development Sara Scott and creative executive Jacqueline Garell are overseeing the project for the studio. 

Here’s what we know about the plot now: Jurassic World Rebirth sees an intrepid team racing to secure DNA samples from the three most colossal creatures across land, sea and air. Five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, the planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived. The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind.

Johansson’s character is Zora Bennett, “a skilled covert operations expert contracted to lead a team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world’s three most massive dinosaurs. When Zora’s operation intersects with a civilian family whose boating expedition was capsized by marauding aquatic dinos, they all find themselves stranded on an island where they come face-to-face with a sinister, shocking discovery that’s been hidden from the world for decades.” Bailey is playing paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis, with Ali as Zora’s most trusted team leader, Duncan Kincaid. 

Edwards told Empire, “It goes back to what I loved about the original, with an embarrassment of riches of different set-piece-type scenarios and tense, fun action moments. There were a lot of opportunities as a filmmaker to have a lot of fun and try and play games with the audience.” The movie will be packed with the dinosaurs movie-goers are hoping to see, as “there are certain dinosaurs it would be a crime against cinema not to include.” And the director also took the opportunity to build up Johansson’s character, saying, “She’s looking for meaning in her life after leaving the military, and this opportunity comes along where [after it] basically she’d never have to work again. But through that journey, she starts to question the ethical rights and wrongs of what they’re doing.“

Are you looking forward to watching Jurassic World Rebirth next year? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

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Massive creatures with scales have become the focus of Empire‘s 2025 Preview as the entertainment magazine debuts new looks at Jurassic World Rebirth and Dean DeBlois’ live-action adaptation of How to Train Your Dragon. DeBlois, who directed all three of Dreamworks Animation’s How to Train Your Dragon films, is partnering with co-director Chris Sanders for the anticipated project. Bringing Hiccup and Toothless’ tale to live-action gives DeBlois a chance to share the fantasy epic with audiences with a new dimension, emotionality, and action. “It’s so dialled-up in terms of stakes — having a fully credible, photo-real dragon stomping around trying to kill him,” DeBlois told Empire regarding the film’s central dragon, Toothless, interacting with Hiccup, played by Mason Thames (The Black Phone).

In How to Train Your Dragon, Hiccup discovers dragons aren’t as terrifying as the stories would have him believe. Hiccup is an outsider, so people will likely brush his opinions aside. Still, when he proves to them that dragons are misunderstood and potentially friendly, he ushers in a new era where Vikings and dragons work together to build a shared society. “There was a bit of awkwardness, but also a vulnerability to him which [came] with the fact that he was 15 when we were auditioning him,” says DeBlois about Thames landing the role.

In the new photo for How to Train Your Dragon, we find Thames’s Hiccup in an arena and battle-ready. As the eager crowd looks down from above, Hiccup braces himself for a questionable outcome to the confrontation.

In contrast, Empire debuted a new image of Scarlett Johansson in Gareth Edwards’s Jurassic World Rebirth, a dinosaur action-adventure film set five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion. In Jurassic World Rebirth, an expedition into isolated equatorial regions to extract DNA from three prehistoric creatures goes awry. Are you remotely surprised? This sort of nonsense happens every time. When will humans learn and leave the dinosaurs alone? Probably never.

Scarlett Johansson’s Zora Bennett carries a massive gun through thick foliage in the new Jurassic World Rebirth photo. The weapon appears to have a giant needle at its tip, seemingly to extract the DNA. I don’t know about you, but you wouldn’t catch my slow-moving ass trying to poke a dinosaur with a giant syringe. Miracle cure or not, humanity can fend for itself.

What do you think about today’s new looks at How to Train Your Dragon and Jurassic World Rebirth? Would you stab a dinosaur’s scaly exterior with that needle gun? Let us know in the comments section below, and be honest.

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Colin Trevorrow wrapped up his Jurassic World trilogy with the 2022 film Jurassic World Dominion, which brought Jurassic World stars Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard together with the stars of the original Jurassic Park; Sam Neill, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum. The movie went over reasonably well with movie-goers, earning a 77% positive audience on Rotten Tomatoes and racking up over a billion dollars at the global box office. The critical reception was another story: only 29% of the reviews were positive. Here on JoBlo, the movie only received a 5/10 review. Speaking with Total Film magazine, Goldblum addressed the fact that Jurassic World Dominion received negative reviews, saying that “It’s tough to make a good movie.”

The Goldblum interview can be found in the newly released issue of Total Film magazine, issue 356 – which, unfortunately, happens to be the final issue of the magazine. When Jurassic World Dominion came up, Goldblum said, “I had such a good time on it. I enjoyed working on it and enjoyed trying to make it good. I think it sold a bunch of tickets. But, you know… [laughs] Everybody’s got an opinion about it. It’s tough to make a good movie.” As the interview went on, he reiterated that working on the film was “a very enjoyable experience,” especially since it allowed him to reunite with Neill and Dern, although that did bring added to pressure to the job. “I was concentrating on trying to make our responsibility there a success, and fulfill our part of the bargain.“

Money talks, so the Jurassic World franchise is already continuing, despite Jurassic World Dominion‘s negative reviews. The new film, Jurassic World Rebirth, is directed by Gareth Edwards (Godzilla) from a screenplay by original Jurassic Park writer David Koepp. This movie won’t be featuring any returning lead characters from the previous Jurassic Park / Jurassic World movies, so Goldblum feels that his character Ian Malcolm “may have ridden off into the sunset. Maybe.“

The story of Jurassic World Rebirth picks up five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion. The planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived. The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind. This action-packed new chapter in the franchise sees an intrepid team racing to secure DNA samples from the three most colossal creatures across land, sea and air.

Aiming for a July 2, 2025 release, the film stars Scarlett Johansson (The Avengers), Mahershala Ali (Green Book), Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton), Rupert Friend (Obi-Wan Kenobi), Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (The Lincoln Lawyer), Luna Blaise (Manifest), David Iacono (The Summer I Turned Pretty), child actress Audrina Miranda, Philippine Velge (Station Eleven), Béchir Sylvain (Diarra from Detroit), and Ed Skrein (Deadpool). Johansson plays skilled covert operations expert Zora Bennett, contracted to lead a skilled team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world’s three most massive dinosaurs. When Zora’s operation intersects with a civilian family whose boating expedition was capsized by marauding aquatic dinos, they all find themselves stranded on an island where they come face-to-face with a sinister, shocking discovery that’s been hidden from the world for decades.

Goldblum said, “My friend Scarlett Johansson and my new friend Jonathan Bailey from Wicked, I think, are taking up the reins. And I can’t wait to see what they do. I think that’s a good idea.“

What did you think of Jurassic World Dominion? Are you looking forward to Jurassic World Rebirth? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

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