Jurassic World 4 Eyeing Deadpool 2 Director David Leitch, Release Date Revealed

The next installment in the Jurassic World franchise, Jurassic World 4, is reportedly eyeing Deadpool 2 and Bullet Train director David Leitch to take the helm. Another sequel in the Jurassic World series was announced last month, with Deadline now reporting that Leitch “is in early talks” to direct the movie, which will be a “completely fresh take on a Jurassic era with Jurassic World castmembers Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard not expected to return, nor the original trilogy’s thespians Jeff Goldblum, Laura Dern and Sam Neill.”

The idea of Leitch, who will soon return to screens with his Ryan Gosling-led action flick The Fall Guy, certainly suggests that the studio is looking to make the next era of the Jurassic franchise much more action based, with the filmmaker known best for the likes of John Wick, Atomic Blonde, Deadpool 2, and the Fast and Furious spinoff Hobbs & Shaw.

Alongside the news of Leitch as potential director, a new logo for Jurassic World 4 has also now been revealed, along with a release date of July 2, 2025.

Universal Studios is set to breathe new life into the Jurassic Park franchise again, with the announcement that a new Jurassic World movie is in development. While the franchise has been nothing short of a box office behemoth, the critical reception to 2021’s Jurassic World: Dominion left something to be desired. In a strategic move that could negate this kind of outcome for the latest addition to the dinosaur saga, the studio has enlisted David Koepp, the screenwriter behind the original Jurassic Park and its sequel, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, to lead the new sequel.

Since its debut in 1993, the Jurassic Park series has delivered the kind of movie magic that only Steven Spielberg knows how to put on screen. It revolutionized visual effects and brought dinosaurs to life in a way that had never been seen before. The original story, based on the 1990 novel by Michael Crichton, was not a monster movie with multiple dinosaur fights and a giant lizard smackdown finale. Leaning into Crichton’s usual science-gone-wrong genre, Jurassic Park merged high-stakes adventure with a cautionary narrative about the ethical boundaries of genetic engineering. The film grossed over $1 billion worldwide, and that, of course, means sequels. Across six movies, the franchise has amassed over $6 billion.

The most recent chapter, Jurassic World: Dominion, released in 2021, concluded the second trilogy and aimed to bridge the gap between legacy characters and the new generation. This included bringing back Jurassic Park stars Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum, as well as delivering many callbacks to the original movie. Despite receiving a mixed critical reception, particularly concerning its plot and frequently incredulous dinosaur fight scenes, the film achieved significant commercial success, further highlighting the popularity of the franchise, and dinosaurs in general.

Jurassic World 4 Now Targeting a 2025 Release

Despite having only been announced, Universal is aiming to have the movie in cinemas next year. While this is certainly feasible – barring the arrival of a pandemic or strike actions – it does seem a big ask for a complete start to finish turn-around considering the level of special effects involved. Such a quick delivery almost treads into the same territory as Marvel Studios ended up in when getting themselves in all kinds of trouble with tight deadlines and overworked effects artists.

The movie’s development is being led by long-time franchise producers Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley, with Spielberg on board as an executive producer through Amblin Entertainment. The forthcoming installment is believed to be a fresh take on the dinosaur saga, which would potentially mean an all-new cast to boot. This certainly didn’t do any harm to the huge box office of Jurassic World, and perhaps after Dominion completed the nostalgia cycle, a radical reinvention of the franchise could be what it needs to succeed.

Koepp has the credentials to help make the movie a success, having already done so with Jurassic Park and The Lost World, as well as many other popular movies, including Mission: Impossible and Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man among others.

The Jurassic Park franchise was never going to go extinct, but whether a new narrative, cast and direction can deliver both a monster box office and satisfy fans of the franchise is something that we can only wait and find out. Based on Universal’s planned release window, it will probably not be long before we discover more about what is coming in the next round of dinosaurs vs humans.

Jurassic World: Dominion

The epic conclusion in the Jurassic World trilogy brings back original cast members Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum to deal with dinosaurs as they have free roam of the Earth.

Release Date

June 10, 2022

Runtime

2hr 8min

Format

Theatrical

Studio

Universal

Tagline

It all started here.

Franchise

Jurassic Park