Jurassic World Rebirth (2025) will mark the beginning of a new phase for the Jurassic series.
Not only is it set to retcon the events of Jurassic World Dominion (2022), but it will feature an entirely new lineup of characters, leaving no room for Alan Grant (Sam Neill), Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern), Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum), Owen Grady (Chris Pratt), Maisie Lockwood (Isabella Sermon), and Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard) to return.
Among those new characters are covert operations expert Zora Bennett (Scarlett Johansson), her trusted team leader Duncan Kincaid (Mahershala Ali), paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis (Jonathan Bailey), big pharmaceutical representative Martin Krebs (Rupert Friend), the father of a shipwrecked family Reuben Delgado (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo), and his three children, who are being played by Luna Blaise, David Iacono, and Audrina Miranda.
But while the official synopsis recently shared by Universal Pictures promises that the film will be beginning of “a new Jurassic era,” it will still undoubtedly feature countless references to previous entries, especially the first film, Jurassic Park (1993).
The Jurassic World sequels are no strangers to being littered with dozens of references to their predecessors — in fact, almost every modern sequel is plagued with these nods and winks.
Related: ‘Jurassic Park’ Releasing Official Never-Before-Seen Version of 1993 Film
The Curse of Nostalgia in Modern Movie Sequels
Jurassic World (2015) featured countless references to the original film, and even to the two sequels, The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) and Jurassic Park III (2001). Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018) and Jurassic World Dominion were no different.
These days, peppering a film with Easter eggs is commonly referred to in film as “nostalgia baiting,” a marketing strategy used to attract audiences who hold the original films close to their hearts.
References to previous films can appear in the form of something as trivial as a similar sequence, like Maisie Lockwood struggling to pull down the door on a dumbwaiter to escape the Indoraptor in Fallen Kingdom, for instance, which echoes the moment Lex Murphy (Ariana Richards) is trying to lock herself inside a kitchen cabinet to avoid the raptors in the original film.
Or, it could be something bigger, like a cameo from a major character.
While no characters from the previous Jurassic movies are expected to return in Jurassic World Rebirth, that doesn’t mean the film won’t have a cameo of some kind. Jurassic World didn’t see the return of any human characters, but it did bring back the original T-Rex.
But, as the upcoming film will, according to the description, have close ties to the 1993 film, it may feature a cameo from John Hammond (the late Richard Attenborough).
Related: ‘Jurassic World 4’ Everything We Know: Plot, Cast, Release Date, Trailer, and News
Jurassic World Rebirth May Bring Back a Dead Character
Jurassic World Rebirth is set to reveal “a sinister, shocking secret that’s been kept hidden from the world for decades.” We’ve no idea what this is, but we know the film takes place on an island where Zora and her team have been tasked with securing genetic samples from the world’s “three most colossal dinosaurs.”
Some behind-the-scenes clues suggest it’s an InGen island, so we may see some video archive footage featuring the long-dead InGen CEO.
Although John Hammond is dead within Jurassic Park/Jurassic World canon, having last appeared mostly bed-ridden in 1997’s The Lost World: Jurassic Park, the character may appear on a video in which he reveals the aforementioned “sinister, shocking” reveal.
However, the idea of seeing the late Richard Attenborough, who sadly passed away in 2014, digitally re-created for the purpose of a nostalgic cameo, could divide the fanbase. As unlikely as such a cameo seems, no film is above using the likeness of actors who have died — there are many examples from recent years.
In most cases, it’s a form of nostalgia-baiting, although, oftentimes, there is also an element of paying tribute to the late actor involved.
Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016), helmed by Jurassic World Rebirth director Gareth Edwards, brought back Peter Cushing’s Grand Moff Tarkin using digital VFX and a stand-in actor. Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021) did the same with Harold Ramis’ Egon Spengler, also achieved using digital VFX and two stand-in actors.
Halloween Kills (2021), however, re-created Donald Pleasence’s likeness for the character Dr. Sam Loomis using only prosthetics.
Whether or not Rebirth will feature a John Hammond/Richard Attenborough cameo remains to be seen.
If it does, let’s hope it takes the lead from Ghostbusters: Afterlife and Halloween Kills, because if it’s anything like this year’s sci-fi horror sequel Alien: Romulus, which brings back the droid “Ash” by digitally re-creating the likeness of the late Ian Holm for a shallow, horrible-looking cameo, Jurassic fans may end up walking out of the theater.
With all that said, Universal Pictures may wish to avoid any legal implications, as it was recently revealed that a friend of Peter Cushing is currently suing Disney and Lucasfilm for allegedly using the late actor’s likeness without his permission.
The use of this type of technology in film and television continues to provoke much debate surrounding the morals and ethics in using a deceased actors’ likeness for the purpose of brief cameos.
Alternatively, John Hammond may appear in the upcoming first-person action-adventure video game “Jurassic Park: Survival” (TBA), which will allow players to explore “a fully realized Isla Nublar” that’s teeming with dinosaurs 24 hours after the original film. After all, re-creating a character and the actors’ likeness in a video game is a lot easier than in film.
Watch the official cinematic trailer below from Jurassic World YouTube:
There’s no release date for “Jurassic Park: Survival.
When Can I Watch Jurassic World Rebirth?
Jurassic World Rebirth will be released in theaters worldwide on July 2, 2025.
Check out the film’s new logo below, per the official Jurassic World X (Twitter) account:
Jurassic World Rebirth. In theaters July 2025.
Jurassic World Rebirth. In theaters July 2025. pic.twitter.com/CLUdLQPPfO
— Jurassic World (@JurassicWorld) August 29, 2024
Jurassic World Rebirth stars Scarlett Johansson (Avengers: Endgame), Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton), Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (The Lincoln Lawyer), Rupert Friend (Obi-Wan Kenobi), Mahershala Ali (The Green Book), Luna Blaise (Manifest), David Iacono (Dead Boy Detectives), Audrina Miranda (Lopez vs Lopez), Philippine Velge (Station Eleven), Bechir Sylvain (BMF), and Ed Skrein (Deadpool).
How would you feel about Jurassic World Rebirth re-creating the likeness of the late Richard Attenborough for a brief cameo? Let Inside the Magic know your thoughts in the comments down below!