The poor reception of Jurassic World Dominion actually proves why the film can't be the final entry into the Jurassic franchise. After the massive success of 1993's Jurassic Park, a franchise was born, initially consisting of a trilogy of films after the release of two sequels, The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park III. In 2015, the franchise was revived with Jurassic World, a legacy sequel that served as the beginning of a new trilogy of films within the franchise. Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom came in 2018, and Jurassic World Dominion in 2022.
Interestingly, the Jurassic World movies seem to follow a similar pattern as the original trilogy: after a successful first film, the quality of the sequels was drastically diminished. Both Jurassic Park III and Jurassic World Dominion round off a trilogy with a weaker third entry, marking a continuation of the Jurassic Park franchise's biggest problem - it can't consistently deliver on its best qualities. This fundamental misunderstanding of what makes the franchise work almost proved its undoing once before. After the disastrous reception of Jurassic World Dominion, it may well do so again.
Though it may seem counterproductive, Jurassic World Dominion's failings actually prove exactly why the franchise must survive. A franchise as iconic as Jurassic Park deserves far better than to end on such a disappointing note, and despite the fact that Dominion was a critical failure, it did demonstrate that the Jurassic franchise still has remarkable blockbuster potential. Many of the components that made the Jurassic Park movies so successful are present in Dominion, but they simply didn't quite land as intended. A slight course correction would allow the Jurassic franchise to continue while avoiding the mistakes of Dominion. In the process, Jurassic World 4 could actually do justice to the franchise.
Jurassic World Dominion Is The Worst Jurassic Park Movie
The problem that Jurassic World Dominion has posed for the wider franchise ultimately stems from the fact that it may be the worst Jurassic Park movie to date. The biggest issue that Jurassic World Dominion faced was living up to its own hype. Dominion was billed as the epic conclusion to the Jurassic World trilogy, promising huge developments and a satisfying conclusion to the Jurassic saga. Despite having a number of Jurassic Park characters return, Jurassic World Dominion actually did remarkably little to clear the very high bar that was set for it by its marketing.
By failing to deliver a conclusion as epic or as satisfying as was promised, Jurassic World Dominion fell short. Though it may be better in an objective sense than the reviled Jurassic Park III, it's by far the most disappointing entry into a franchise that is rapidly becoming known for its disappointing stories. What's more, teasing that it would be the end of the Jurassic franchise was a needless gambit that simply didn't pay off - mostly because the overambitious ideas of Jurassic World Dominion weren't quite delivered in the way they needed to be to make the film work as intended.
Jurassic World Dominion Is A Deflating End To The Franchise
Leading up to its release, it was claimed that Jurassic World Dominion was the franchise's last movie, and that's a huge part of what made it such a disappointment. Put simply, Dominion just didn't make for a satisfying conclusion to a franchise as beloved as Jurassic Park, even after bringing back fan-favorite characters from the original movie. In fact, by blending Jurassic World's cast with Jurassic Park's, Dominion finally properly connected the stories of the two trilogies, which isn't something that makes for a good ending.
With regard to actually concluding the Jurassic franchise's story, Dominion was an utter failure. It actually introduced a number of new ideas to the franchise that deserve to be explored in greater depth and did nothing that actually felt like a definitive end. Dinosaurs and humans are still forced to find a way to coexist, and the natural balance of the Earth is still under threat. In fact, all that's established by Jurassic World Dominion's ending - there's so much more story still to tell, so if it is in fact the final film in the franchise, it's not one that's even remotely satisfying.
Jurassic World 4 Should Happen (The Franchise Still Has Potential)
The introduction of legacy characters into Jurassic World Dominion was an interesting development, and it's one that teases there's life left in the franchise yet. Paradoxically, the inclusion of legacy characters was both one of Dominion's best elements and one of the reasons it failed to achieve its goals: it was intriguing enough that it hinted the franchise should continue despite the fact that Dominion was billed as the conclusion to the franchise. Besides Jurassic Park's characters returning, there were a number of aspects of Jurassic World Dominion that belie a greater potential for the franchise's future (despite it being a generally disappointing entry).
Continuing to have a world inhabited by both dinosaurs and humans opens the door for a huge amount of narrative potential, and the family dynamic of Owen, Claire, and Maisie was also one that could be further explored. Further development of the idea of humans and dinosaurs adapting to coexist with one another could serve as the foundation for another series of movies (or at least one final entry into the franchise), particularly as it's one of the things that Dominion teased but didn't properly explore. The number of questions left unanswered by Jurassic World Dominion may be a disappointing aspect of the film itself, but it also evidences the potential for the franchise's future, proving exactly why Jurassic World 4 should happen.
Will Jurassic World 4 Ever Happen?
Whether Jurassic World 4 will actually be made remains to be seen, but the possibility certainly hasn't been ruled out. The mixed reception to Jurassic World Dominion indicates that any potential sequels should be handled with care and that following up too quickly would be a particularly risky move. Instead, taking the time to allow the disappointment of Dominion to dissipate before making a firm decision on whether to press on with the franchise's story is the best course of action, particularly as it offers an opportunity for audiences to build a greater appreciation for the divisive film.
Ultimately, a franchise as successful as Jurassic Park will almost certainly live on in one form or another, and that seems to make Jurassic World 4 inevitable. In fact, the biggest question isn't whether the franchise will survive, but rather when it will continue and whether the next entry will be in the form of a sequel or a reboot of some sort. The massive popularity of the Jurassic Park movies, the brilliance of the franchise's premise, and the blockbuster potential of thrilling dinosaur action are simply too tempting for Hollywood to leave well enough alone, making a sequel the best course of action even after Jurassic World Dominion's shortcomings.