Jurassic Park came out in 1993, and this thrilling film was based on a Michael Crichton novel of the same name. It focused on a park full of recreated dinosaurs, which, in real life, were shown through CGI and animatronics. These effects, along with the acting, the plot and that awesome theme song, helped in earning this flick numerous awards and tons of fans.
Since the franchise is still going, it would be fun to look back at the original cast and then to see what these stars look like now… especially since it was recently confirmed that some of them will appear in Jurassic World 3 in 2021!
Sam Neill as Dr. Alan Grant
Sam Neill portrayed Dr. Alan Grant, a paleontologist who was invited to Jurassic Park. This character traveled there with a friend (who is coming up next) and played a big part in keeping two children safe from dinos.
Being Dr. Grant is Neill’s most notable role of all time, but over the years, he has been in several other known works; he was in films like Event Horizon, Bicentennial Man and Peter Rabbit. His television credits include shows such as The Tudors, Alcatraz and Peaky Blinders. He is also one of the ones who will be in the next installment of this franchise in 2021!
Laura Dern as Dr. Ellie Sattler
Laura Dern played a paleobotanist invited to the park, Dr. Ellie Sattler. She was very excited about the opportunity, hit some rough patches along the way but survived. She was even shown later in the franchise, married and with kids.
Dern is a well-known actress from a famous family (her parents are Bruce Dern and Diane Ladd), and she has appeared in many movies and TV shows; a few include October Sky, Little Fockers and Star Wars: The Last Jedi and The Mindy Project, Big Little Lies and Twin Peaks. She, too, will reprise this role in 2021.
Jeff Goldblum as Dr. Ian Malcolm
Dr. Ian Malcolm was portrayed by Jeff Goldblum, and this character was a mathematician. He had some very memorable lines and moments (like the water droplets) about chaos theory, and fans are already looking forward to what he will add to the sixth movie that is coming soon.
Besides this franchise, Goldblum has been in lots and lots of other movies, like Independence Day, The Grand Budapest Hotel and Isle of Dogs, and television series, such as Will & Grace, Portlandia and The World According to Jeff Goldblum, which will be part of Disney+.
Richard Attenborough as John Hammond
The three characters up above were invited to the park by the creator, John Hammond. He was played by Richard Attenborough, who passed away in 2014. Throughout his career, Attenborough was involved in acting, filmmaking, business and politics.
He won Academy Awards, BAFTA Awards and Golden Globe Awards, and after Jurassic Park, he appeared in films such as Miracle on 34th Street, Hamlet and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. To many, especially to fans of this story, he will always be remembered as the one who gave this fictional world this attraction, though.
Ariana Richards as Lex Murphy
John’s granddaughter was Lex Murphy, portrayed by Ariana Richards; her scenes involving jello and an oven are legendary and are referenced quite often in other forms of entertainment! Before this movie, Richards was in known flicks like Prancer and Tremors. Afterwards, she was in Tremors 3: Back to Perfection and TV shows like Boy Meets World.
She has also released music and is a successful artist, and art has been her focus in the past few years, instead of acting. Additionally, Richards got married in 2013, as well as had a daughter in 2015.
Joseph Mazzello as Tim Murphy
Joseph Mazzello played Tim Murphy, who was Lex’s brother and John’s grandson, and his most remembered scene was the one on the electric fence. Mazzello has continued to act since then, though, as he has appeared in television series like CSI, Without a Trace, Justified and Elementary and in films such as The River Wild, Simon Birch, Raising Helen and The Social Network.
Last year, he was even in the Queen movie, Bohemian Rhapsody! Did anyone happen to recognize him, all grown up and as bass guitarist John Deacon?
Samuel L. Jackson as Ray Arnold
A supporting character in the original film was Ray Arnold, the chief engineer of the park. Samuel L. Jackson played this role, and he is a very famous actor and producer who has won awards and who has appeared in some very notable films over the years.
A few of these include Pulp Fiction, Die Hard with a Vengeance, Deep Blue Sea, Shaft, Snakes on a Plane and Django Unchained. He was also in the Star Wars prequel trilogy as Mace Windu, and he is part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Nick Fury.
Wayne Knight as Dennis Nedry
The film wouldn’t have been complete without Wayne Knight as Dennis Nedry! Nedry was a computer programmer whose notable moments had to do with his computer protection, a can of shaving cream and a Dilophosaurus. In real life, Knight has actually provided his voice acting skills to several animated flicks, such as Hercules, The Brave Little Toaster Goes to Mars, Tarzan, Toy Story 2 and Kung Fu Panda.
He has also appeared in numerous TV shows over the years, like 3rd Rock from the Sun, Hot in Cleveland and The Young and the Restless. He is probably best known for playing Newman on Seinfeld, though.
BD Wong as Dr. Henry Wu
Dr. Henry Wu is the geneticist who makes all of the dinosaurs, and this important part is played by actor BD Wong. Some of his other notable roles include playing Howard Weinstein in the rom-com movie Father of the Bride and its sequel and voicing Shang in the animated Disney flick Mulan and its sequel.
He has also been in several popular television shows, like The X-Files, Mr. Robot and American Horror Story: Apocalypse. And, of course, Wong has reprised his role in all of the Jurassic World films, as well!
Martin Ferrero as Donald Gennaro
Last but not least, Jurassic Park featured a character named Donald Gennaro; he was a lawyer who was inspecting the park, and he was taken out by a T-rex… while on the toilet. This character was portrayed by an actor named Martin Ferrero. Before this role, he had small parts in movies like The Incredible Shrinking Woman and Planes, Trains & Automobiles.
After this role, he was in films like Heat and Air Bud: World Pup. He has also appeared in a number of television shows such as M*A*S*H, Cheers, L.A. Law and The Practice. Gennaro, back in 1993, was definitely his most popular part ever!