‘Jurassic World 4’ May Have Recast Beloved Legacy Character

in Movies & TV

(L) Lex Murphy eating jello while seeing a raptor in 'Jurassic Park' (R) Scarlett Johansson in 'Lucy'

Credit: Universal Studios

It’s possible the rumored new star of Jurassic World 4 is playing an existing character.

Jurassic World 4 (2025) is officially in active development. The seventh film in the long-running Jurassic franchise, which started with Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park (1993) over 30 years ago, is set for release next year, and though Universal Pictures has yet to confirm how the next installment will fit into the wider franchise, we still know a fair bit about it.

Deadpool 2 (2018) and Bullet Train (2022) director David Leitch was originally tapped to helm the upcoming film, however, following his exit (which was reportedly over creative differences), Godzilla (2014) and Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2018) director Gareth Edwards was brought on board. In admitting he’s a lifelong fan of the original film, Edwards said he “dropped everything” to be involved with the project.

Robert Muldoon (Bob Peck) hunting the raptors in 'Jurassic Park' (1993)
Credit: Universal Studios

Related: Confirmed: ‘Jurassic Park’ Sequel Will Ignore Every Film Since 1993 Original

Jurassic World 4 reunites several creatives who worked on previous films.

There’s Jurassic Park and The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) screenwriter David Koepp and director Steven Spielberg (who resumes his EP duties after doing so on the last four films), Jurassic World trilogy producers Frank Marshall and Patrick Cowley, and paleontologists Steve Brusatte and Jack Horner. Brusatte was an advisor on Jurassic World Dominion (2022), while Horner has consulted on every film since the 1993 original.

As for returning cast members, it’s becoming increasingly unlikely.

In separate interviews unrelated to Jurassic World 4, Bryce Dallas Howard (the Jurassic World trilogy’s Claire Dearing), DeWanda Wise (Dominion‘s Kayla Watts), and Sam Neill (Jurassic Park, Jurassic Park III, and Dominion‘s Alan Grant) each said they don’t think they’ll be reprising their roles in the upcoming film. Meanwhile, Nick Robinson (Jurassic World‘s Zach Mitchell) has expressed an interest in returning for another outing.

Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) screaming "Run" in 'Jurassic World'
Credit: Universal Studios

Related: ‘Jurassic World 4’s Script Is Already Better Than ‘Dominion’

With the film said to be the start of “a new Jurassic era,” it’s likely to introduce a new generation of characters in the same way Jurassic World (2015) did with Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) and Owen Grady (Chris Pratt). And it was recently reported that Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) star Scarlett Johansson, best known for portraying Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow, has been in talks with Universal Pictures to lead Jurassic World 4.

Whether or not this rumor has any merit remains to be seen, but it’s unsurprising that Universal may be eyeing a world-famous star like Johansson. Though relatively unknown when Jurassic World hit theaters, Johansson’s fellow Marvel star Chris Pratt (Peter Quill, AKA Star-Lord) had already made his MCU debut in James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) the previous year.

Scarlett Johansson as Natasha Romanoff escaping from Thaddeus Ross in 'Black Widow'
Credit: Marvel Studios

Related: Confirmed: ‘Jurassic World’ Character Returning for Upcoming Sequel

However, while Scarlett Johansson would likely be playing a brand-new character (assuming she does turn out to be the face of the new Jurassic era), it’s entirely possible she’s playing an existing Jurassic character, perhaps Lex Murphy from the original film, who was played brilliantly by Ariana Richards.

While many fans (ourselves included) would love to see Ariana Richards reprise her role as Lex Murphy, one of the original two “Jurassic kids” alongside her brother Tim Murphy (Joe Mazzello), she hasn’t appeared on screen since the 2013 film Battledogs. That’s not to say she has retired from acting, but it’s widely known that Richards continues to focus mainly on her art career.

(L to R) Lex (Arianna Richards) and Tim (Joe Mazzello) hiding in the kitchen in 'Jurassic Park'
Credit: Universal Studios

Related: ‘Jurassic’ Star Killed in ‘The Lost World’ Returning for ‘Jurassic World 4’

Of course, recasting an iconic character like Lex would not go down well with fans. On the other hand, seeing her return would be pretty awesome, and there might be no better current star to continue Lex’s Jurassic journey than Scarlett Johansson. Lex hasn’t been seen since her brief cameo in 1997’s The Lost World alongside her brother Tim. As such, the Murphy siblings remain the only Jurassic Park legacy characters who haven’t returned.

Alternatively, Johansson, 39, may wind up playing an older version of Maisie Lockwood (Isabella Sermon), the human clone who was an integral part to the last two films, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018) and Dominion. That said, this would likely cause some confusion because, technically speaking, we already know what Maisie is destined to look like as an adult as she’s the clone of her own mother Charlotte Lockwood, whose adult-counterpart is played by Elva Trill in the Site B archive footage revealed in Dominion.

Do you think Scarlett Johansson will become the face of Jurassic World 4? And would you like to see Lex Murphy return, with or without Ariana Richards? Let Inside the Magic know in the comments down below?

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