Prehistoric Planet is currently one of the best dinosaur documentaries. While there have been many notable documentaries throughout the years, such as Walking with Dinosaurs, Planet Dinosaur, and Paleoworld, there haven’t been as many in recent years. As a result, when Prehistoric Planet was released in 2022, it instantly became an unprecedented success. Its immaculate narration by Sir David Attenborough, mind-blowing music by Hans Zimmer, and stunning cinematography captivated many fans of the prehistoric age.
Prehistoric Planet is a British-American nature documentary series that premiered on Apple TV+ in 2022. The BBC Studios Natural History Unit created the series, with Adam Valdez at the helm, who previously worked on The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring and The Jungle Book. The groundbreaking documentary is scheduled to return shortly, and with the official trailer for the second season out, there’s a lot to look forward to. That said, here’s what we hope to see in Season 2 of Prehistoric Planet.
New Species of Dinosaurs
The focal point of the Prehistoric Planet documentary has always been to explore the various species of dinosaurs. The first season, for example, depicted the lives of several species from dawn to demise, including Tyrannosaurus, whose offspring had to swim across the perilous sea coast to hunt a giant turtle, and Alcione, whose hatchlings took their first flight by evading the clutches of deadly pterosaurs.
It covered more than fifty distinct kinds of dinosaurs in its five-episode run. However, there are still a wide variety of these wonderful creatures that we haven’t looked at in the Prehistoric Planet documentary. The European director of Apple TV+’s creative department has shared details about the upcoming second season. In his own words,
“The first season of ‘Prehistoric Planet’ brought dinosaurs back to life in a way global audiences had never seen before. Collaborating with the brilliant Jon Favreau and our fantastic partners at the BBC, we are thrilled that viewers will once again have the opportunity to be immersed in the wonders of our world as it was 66 million years ago and to experience even more weird and wonderful creatures in season two.”
As seen in the trailer, Prehistoric Planet will feature new dinosaur species as well as never-before-seen apex predators such as T. rex, which is considered the mightiest predator on the land.
Several other species were also included, including Tarchia, a formidable defender, and giant Mosasaurus, a 55-foot aquatic lizard that can accelerate at incredible speeds to devour its prey. While most of these creatures are dominant on land and water, we’ll also see a giraffe-sized flying reptile known as Quetzalcoatlus and several new debuts that were not seen in the first season.
Different Habitats and Environments
While portraying various species with impeccable animation that makes them feel real is impressive enough, Prehistoric Planet also explores these creatures’ different living conditions.
It explored coasts, deserts, ice worlds, forests, and even freshwaters in the first season, but the second season will offer much more. There will be new dinosaurs described from settings such as islands, swamps, oceans, and even North America, where dinosaurs were abundant throughout the Late Cretaceous Period.
While discussing the new trailer, Apple TV+ revealed the new habitats that will take place in the upcoming season:
“Exploring five new habitats, audiences can expect to be transported to the active volcanoes of India, the marshlands of Madagascar, the deep oceans near North America, and so much more. Throughout this season, the series and its creators take you up close into dinosaurs’ habitats to experience the dangers, the adventures, and even the camaraderie between species unlike any we’ve seen before.”
Sir David Attenborough Retains His Role as Narrator
The documentary’s strongest characteristic, besides its cinematography and the constant addition of new dinosaur species, is Sir David Attenborough. The three-time Primetime Emmy winner has previously authored several wildlife documentaries like Planet Earth, Life on Earth, Frozen Planet, and Madagascar, but he’s also well-known for his flawless narrations that audiences could listen to all day.
While it sometimes feels soothing, like Hans Zimmer’s music, he also alters the pitch of his voice to fit the mood of the documentary. With his voice alone, viewers can sense the labor of love and the undying passion that went into the writing. Sir David Attenborough will return to narrate these beautiful and mighty creatures as they traverse the earth, hunting, surviving, and enjoying their lives in the second season of Prehistoric Planet.
Along with the new season, Apple TV+ announced a podcast called “Prehistoric Planet: The Official Podcast,” which will include an in-depth interview with Jon Favreau, the showrunner for the Prehistoric Planet documentary. While the podcast’s first episode was released on May 8, subsequent episodes of this four-episode podcast will be released weekly through May 29.
The much-anticipated second season of Prehistoric Planet will premiere on Apple TV+ on May 22, 2023.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
