As Hollywood goes franchise crazy, can an oldy but a goody get in on that action?
You're watching Beyond The Trailer’s review of Jurassic World...
Jurassic Park came out over twenty years ago, and there hasn’t been another entry in the
franchise since 2001. But certainly not for lack of trying! Steven Spielberg, who directed
the first entry before moving solely to producer status on the franchise, never gave up on
the idea of fourth film. When Keira Knightley made a big splash with Pirates of the Caribbean
back in 2003, Spielberg immediately began talks with her to join the franchise. When
that didn’t work out, Spielberg turned to Jeremy Piven who’d just made a big impression
in Hollywood with Entourage, as well as Emmy Rossum who’d just landed the lead role in
The Phantom of the Opera. He then considered David Boreanaz - hot off of his Buffy spin-off
Angel. Yes, for some reason, when it comes to casting films he ISN’T directing, Spielberg
is oddly focused on star power - often chasing up and coming talent like a dog chasing cars,
and compounding the problem even more so is he’s often chasing the WRONG cars. That’s
evidenced by Ron Howard’s daughter Bryce Dallas Howard eventually landing the female
lead here - an actress Hollywood is enamored with but with whom audiences are not. But
then Spielberg went after one car nobody could miss and that everyone was chasing, Chris
Pratt. When Guardians of the Galaxy became one of the most successful movies of 2014,
Pratt suddenly found himself on every studio’s wishlist - complete with offers to become
a Ghostbuster and the new Indiana Jones, again for Spielberg! Pratt says he’s not interested
in any of those high profile roles, as his franchise itch is scratched with Guardians
and Jurassic World. But with only one hit under his belt, all eyes will be on Jurassic
World to see if he’s indeed a box office draw. And to be fair, all signs do seem to
point to yes, as Jurassic World is expected to open with around one hundred million. But
Jurassic World has some impressive star-power behind the camera as well, with Rise and Dawn
of the Planet of the Apes screenwriters Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver on script duty - although
director Colin Trevorrow has apparently done a major re-write on their original script.
In fact, he feels he changed the script so much he was upset when the Writers Guild ruled
that Jaffa and Silver should still be credited. Trevorrow does have a lot riding on Jurassic
World, as he’s the latest indie director to try and make the jump to blockbuster filmmaking
as the demand for fresh, innovative talent is so high right now. Trevorrow has already
said he won’t return for a fifth Jurassic film, yet maybe he’s just angling for more
cash just like Joss Whedon initially said he wouldn’t return for Avengers 2... Speaking
of not returning, despite being open to the idea none of the original cast members are
returning for this fourth entry save BD Wong - and of course, tragically, Richard Attenborough
could not return because he passed away last year. But the velociraptors are back! As well
as the T-Rex! And there’s a brand new dinosaur, Indominus Rex, a hybrid created by the Masrani
Corporation to boost attendance at the now operating theme park. So, the big star here
is a fictional dinosaur? And there are no feathered dinosaurs in the movie? Hollywood,
you are KILLING natural history museums...