Jurassic World 2: Every Callback To Jurassic Park

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom is the fourth sequel to 1993's Jurassic Park and, like every sequel to come before it, the film makes sure to reference that first installment every chance it gets. 2015's Jurassic World sent its characters on a brief tour of the original park, with plenty of shots of the night vision goggles and the classic jeeps, but the sequel goes even deeper, including several allusions to Steven Spielberg's classic.

These callbacks range from the overt to the more subtle, but it's impossible to mistake them for anything other than what they are - repeated reminders of what first made us fall in love with this franchise, and why we keep coming back (no matter how underwhelming even the better sequels tend to be).

This Page: The Brachiosaurus, A Dinosaur Stampede & More
Page 2: Raptors Opening Doors, Clever Girl Redux & More

That Killer Opening

The opening scene of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom sets the tone for the film, and in doing so, ties itself closely to Jurassic Park right from the start. In the opening scenes of both films, workers involved in transporting a dinosaur - or in Jurassic World 2's case, a piece of a dinosaur - meet a grisly end in the jaws of some terrifying beast. Both scenes are here to establish the same thing: the danger at hand, enforcing from the start that some dinosaurs are deadly predators who won't hesitate to make tasty meals out of humans.

Jurassic World 2's opening doesn't just crib the killing of nameless characters from Jurassic Park (and Jurassic Park 2: The Lost World, for that matter); it also manages to pay homage to that film's famous T-Rex chase scene. The whole mood of the Jurassic World 2's opening - with the heavy rains, high winds, and uneasy feeling - is reminiscent of the Jurassic Park scene where the jeeps are first discovered after the initial T-Rex attack, and by recreating it, Jurassic World 2 primes audiences for what's next. The hapless worker can't distinguish between the booming volcano and the booming steps of the T-Rex, but fans will know exactly what's coming for him.

Zia's First Dinosaur Sighting

The moment in Jurassic Park where Alan Grant, Ellie Sattler, and Ian Macolm first see a live dinosaur - the majestic and massive Brachiosaurus, to be specific - is now an iconic moment not just for the franchise, but in the history of cinema. Fallen Kingdom does its best to recreate this magic moment, having paleo-veterinarian Zia Rodriguez exit the armored vehicles in order to get her first glimpse of a living dinosaur - also a Brachiosaurus - as they enter the ruins of Jurassic World's plaza. The scene never really lives up to the splendor of the original, but it's clearly an attempt at evoking the same sense of wonder at the dinosaurs in its characters, and by extension, the audience.

Running From The Stampede

The reason for Jurassic World 2's characters needing to return yet again to Isla Nublar involves a volcano which at any moment will erupt and destroy the whole island. That inevitable eruption is what leads to those scenes of Owen, Claire, and Franklin running for their lives from a stampede of dinosaurs who are also running for their lives from the coming lava. It's a heart-pounding sequence, but it's the moment of them taking cover behind an old log that comes across as a clear callback to Dr. Grant, Tim, and Lex hiding from a stampede of Gallimimus in Jurassic Park. And in fact, it's where the scene goes next that makes this an even stronger allusion.

Gyrosphere Attack

While Owen, Claire, and Franklin are hiding behind the log as it's struck by stampeding dinosaurs, the repeated impacts eventually free a wedged gyrosphere. This is their chance to escape, but before Owen can get in the gyrosphere behind Claire and Franklin, a Carnotaurus shows up to menace them in a manner that's strikingly similar to the T-Rex attacking the jeeps in Jurassic Park. As Owen evades the Carnotaurus, the gyrosphere spins around and round, eventually causing the pod's door to shut and seal, locking Owen out. But before Owen becomes dinochow, the T-Rex herself shows up and takes a bite out of the Carnotaurus, tying the whole scenario back to Jurassic Park's Gallimimus stampede, where the T-Rex also grabbed a bite to eat while on the move.

Death of the Brachiosaurus

The eruption of the volcano and the ensuing scramble of both man and beast to get off the island is one of Jurassic World 2's most thrilling sequences, but it's the sequence's final shot that will stick with audiences well after the credits roll. Having just barely made it on to one of the boats fleeing the island, Owen and Claire look back at the dock where a lone Brachiosaurus stands and wails as it's consumed by the oncoming lava and ash. The image is absolutely harrowing, a real punch to the gut, and sure to become one of Jurassic World 2's most memorable moments.

Maisie & The Egg Incubators

The Brachiosaurus may be the first living dinosaur that Alan and Ellie see in Jurassic Park, but the first dinosaur they actually get to interact with is a baby Velociraptor. The scene comes during the tour of the Jurassic Park's breeding facility when, after rudely disembarking from the guided tour early, Alan and Ellie get to witness the birth of a baby raptor up close. This scene gets referenced, however briefly, in Jurassic World 2 when Maisie places her hands on the glass incubator and peers at the dinosaur eggs in Lockwood Estate's basement lab. The connection to the raptors is made all the stronger when she later watches archival video of Owen training Jurassic World's young raptors, proving again that even the most fearsome creatures are cute when they're babies.

Page 2: Raptors Opening Doors, Clever Girl Redux & More

Maisie Hiding From Monsters

Maisie's time exploring the lab is cut short when Eli Mills and Dr. Henry Wu enter and begin discussing their real plans for the dinosaurs - and Blue in particular. To avoid getting caught, she crawls around the lab, hiding just out of sight as she looks for her escape, before finding herself face to face with their newest, deadly abomination: the Indoraptor. The scene is reminiscent of another from Jurassic Park where children are desperately trying to hide - the kitchen scene where Tim and Lex fend off two Velociraptors. Yet, while Maisie does wind up screaming her lungs out at the sight of the terrifying Indoraptor, the real monsters she's running from are the men who made it.

The Dumbwaiter Door

Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom Indoraptor

But there's an even a more obvious reference to Jurassic Park's kitchen scene, and it once again involves Maisie and the Indoraptor. During Jurassic World 2's final act, the genetically-engineered monster is rampaging throughout the Lockwood Estate, and for much of that chase, its target is the young Maisie. To escape, she makes for the dumbwaiter the movie has already shown her using to navigate around the mansion, but she can't get the door to close and the Indoraptor is coming for her. Maisie repeatedly tugs on the door, struggling to close it, eventually slamming it shut just as the Indoraptor reaches her. The scene is immediately recognizable as being similar to the intense moment from the kitchen scene where Lex is struggling to close the metal cabinet door.

"Clever Girl" Redux

The scene in Jurassic Park where the park's game warden, Robert Muldoon, is outsmarted by a pair of Velicoraptors is infamous, spawning a million memes and t-shirts. And of course, Jurassic World 2 makes sure it has its own "Clever girl" moment, too. The film surprisingly shows some restraint by refraining from having anyone actually utter the iconic phrase, but the scene in where Wheatley - Jurassic World 2's big game hunter and Muldoon-insert - believes he's tranquilized the Indoraptor, only to learn she's faking it, includes a more-than-subtle nod to that original scene. As he enters the cage and creeps towards the "unconscious" dinosaur, the Indoraptor moves its tail, creating a distraction and allowing it to get the drop on Wheatley with its more dangerous end.

Almost Got Away

Both Jurassic Park and Jurassic World 2 include scummy characters who only see the dinosaurs as a means to make a lot of money. In Jurassic Park, it's Hammond's lawyer, Donald Gennaro; in Jurassic World 2, it's Mills and the auctioneer, Gunnar Eversol - two characters who both receive their comeuppance, but for this comparison, it's Eversol who fits the bill. Similarly to Gennaro - who believes he's managed to escape the T-Rex when he hides in a bathroom stall, only to end up getting eaten while in a rather undignified position - Eversol also has a brief moment of thinking he's safe. With the Indoraptor loose, Eversol makes for the elevator, getting in and signaling the door to close just as the dinosaur attacks. The elevator doors close in nick of time, Eversol sighs in relief, and then the Indoraptor's tail casually brushes the short-circuiting control panel, re-opening the doors and exposing Eversol to its very sharp teeth.

Dangerous System Reboot

Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom - Owen Claire and Indoraptor

Where there are dinosaurs on the loose, there are electrical failures. And much like in Jurassic Park - where a necessary reboot of the park's whole system results in the electrical fence powering up just as Tim in scaling over it, nearly killing him - Fallen Kingdom also finds a way for a power reset to endanger a child. This time, it's while Owen, Claire, and Maisie are hiding from the Indoraptor inside the Lockewood Estate's museum. Having turned off all the lights, they sneak through the large displays behind glass along the outside of the room, and at the exact moment the Indoraptor is near, the power gets reset and the lights come back on. The Indoraptor sees them, smashes through the glass, and the dangerous chase continues.

They Can Open Doors - And Windows

Separated from Owen and Claire, Maisie runs from the Indoraptor and hides in her room (as kids do). But just being in her room with the doors locked and the windows latched isn't enough to keep out the Indoraptor. Like Jurassic Park's Velociraptors before her, the Indoraptor is also more than capable of opening doors - and not too mention, windows. Once inside Maisie's bedroom, the Indoraptors mimicking of the prowling Velociraptors only continues, with her tapping of her large claw and the shadow her menacing profile casts on the wall.

Pterodactyls in Flight

After all is said and done, and those who survive the disaster at Jurassic Park are safely on the helicopter flying away from the island, there's a lingering shot of Pterodactyls flying across the horizon. It's now the iconic final shot of the film, accompanied by that now even more iconic John William's score. Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom includes a similar shot of Pterodactyls in flight as Owen, Claire, and Maisie drive away from Lockwood Estate. It isn't this film's final shot (though, that too involves some Pterodactyls) but callbacks don't get more explicit than that, making it the last in a long list of allusions Jurassic World 2 has to the original, Jurassic Park.