Jurassic World and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom take a direct approach to imitating the original Jurassic Park franchise, but Jurassic World: Dominion will have to break this copycat pattern. Jurassic World: Dominion, set to be released in 2022, will bring back stars from the previous Jurassic World movies along with a few familiar favorites from the original Jurassic Park trilogy. However, with the likes of Sam Neil and Jeff Goldblum comes the risk that the movie will fall into familiar habits of recycling material from the original series, and ultimately fail to deliver something new.
Jurassic World: Dominion is already highly anticipated, and production began in early 2020. Unfortunately, the pandemic stalled production, and the film which was initially set to be released in the summer of 2021 will now release in June 2022. Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard will be returning once again along with stars of the original Jurassic Park trilogy, Sam Neill, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum. Audiences are thrilled to see the old cast returning once again, hoping that it will also return the whimsy of the first film that many think will make Jurassic World: Dominion the sequel audiences always wanted.
The first two Jurassic World films take heavy inspiration from the first two Jurassic Park movies. There are moments where the original park (film) is overtly referenced, such as a scene when a Jurassic World park employee is found wearing a Jurassic Park t-shirt and exclaiming how great the original park was (once again acting as an overt stand-in for the original film). Jurassic World also recreated beats from the original, such as the dinosaur reflection of the side-view mirror. Besides that, the first two Jurassic World films practically steal the main plot points of the first two Jurassic Park films and fill in the gaps to make the storyline seem exciting and new. In order to be a success on its own merits, Jurassic World: Dominion must avoid these pitfalls.
While the Jurassic World films are very good and extremely popular, it cannot be denied that the Jurassic World franchise has been controversial because of its perceived plagiarization of the originals. The first films in each trilogy mirror one another, with elements such as a new park of dinosaurs, concerns over the genetic sequencing gaps, and the dangers of velociraptors. Similarly, the second films also share narrative elements, including the cold open of a dinosaur attack, a lead character from the original film meeting with the nephew of one of the park’s monetary sponsors at a mention, and a pseud0-rescue mission to the island lead by a big game hunter hired to bring dinosaurs to the mainland to be sold. These similarities, while useful for recapturing a sense of nostalgia, ultimately fail to help the first two Jurassic World films stand out from the crowd or add anything new to the franchise. Avoiding this trap is, therefore, a must for Jurassic World: Dominion.
Not only is breaking this pattern important for Jurassic World: Dominion on an intellectual level, it's also vital because the third film in the original series is generally considered an ignominious failure. Jurassic Park 3 was both a critical and box-office bomb, meaning that there isn't the same sense of nostalgia for Jurassic World: Dominion to draw upon. Hopefully, this will force filmmakers to solve the copycat problem by creating a completely new story. Jurassic World: Dominion is already set to be the first Jurassic Park film that doesn’t take place on one of the islands. New trailers have revealed new dinosaurs, a new look, and what should hopefully be a more original return to the first films incorporating the stars of the Jurassic Park franchise, giving Jurassic World: Dominion a chance to create a sequel better than the other Jurassic World movies.
