The Jurassic Park franchise is synonymous for cutting edge visual effects bringing the dinosaurs and world to life, with none more iconic than the lifelike animatronic creations from Stan Winston Studios. With the return of the Jurassic franchise in 2015, animatronic dinosaurs were severely dialed back, with only the dying Apatosaurus head and neck by ‘Legacy Effects’. However, after the films debut audience flocked to theaters, winning more goodwill for investing in practical effects with ‘Fallen Kingdom’ – in which Neal Scanlan and his Star Wars Creature Team of Pinewood Studios made their dino-debut.
Fresh from the creatures and animatronic panel at Star Wars Celebration 2019, Neal Scanlan has been confirmed to be returning for the third, and final film of the Jurassic World saga.
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While Fallen Kingdom significantly increased the amount of animatronics used from Jurassic World, it still did not hit the same level of scale that Stan Winston’s team achieved across the original trilogy. Namely, all the final on screen animatronics in the film were that of animals who were laying down due to being traqulized or injured. While a Indoraptor animatronic of the head and neck was made for the animal during the his hunting antics, the final creature on screen was replaced by (incredibly lifelike) CGI. As the third Jurassic World is expected to bookend the latest Jurassic trilogy, it would be the perfect opportunity to trailblaze the technology bringing the dinosaurs to life into whole new frontiers.
With the huge advancements in what CGI is capable of, I would personally love to see fully mobile practical dinosaurs (perhaps people in suits with legs exposed ‘Jurassic World Live Tour’ style – or perhaps driven around on some sort of vehicle base) augmented by CGI to simply hide the bells and whistles of the puppetry at play. The new expansive saga of modern Star Wars films use those techniques to bring characters to life without the limitations usually associated with practical effects, which Scanlan and his team are involved with (alongside Industrial Light & Magic).
This news unfortunately means the team at Legacy Effects, founded by Stan Winston Studios veterans after its closure, are unlikely to work on Jurassic World 3. As Legacy has many artists who worked on the original Jurassic Park trilogy, in which its lifelike animatronic dinosaurs have yet to be topped, it would have been fitting to see them close out trilogy. However, Scanlan and his team have an incredible pedigree of films, Scanlan himself being a founding member of the Jim Henson Creature Shop, and their immense talent and passion is a perfect fit for Jurassic World.
Personally, outside of pushing practical effects into bold new territory, I’d love to see one more thing: the return of the Stan Winston Jurassic Park designs. As Jurassic World 3 promises to close out this six film saga which started in 1993, now would be the perfect time to reanimate every detail fans fondly remember, bringing those iconic dinosaurs back to the big screen in big ways.
What do you hope Neal Scanlan and his team do with Jurassic World 3’s animatronic dinosaurs, and would you like to see Legacy Effects return as well? Sound off in the comments below, and as always, stay tuned for the latest news!
Hold on to your butts! The first trailer for Universal Studios Hollywood’s ‘Jurassic World the Ride’ is here! Unleashing the Tyrannosarus Rex on the backlot, this fun new trailer ends with a tease for what type of action the ride will feature. Check out the trailer below:
Introducing Jurassic World – The Ride at Universal Studios Hollywood. More real. More intense. It’s an experience like never before. See what awaits you with our new TV commercial and then get ready to survive the new epic adventure opening this Summer.
“Jurassic World—The Ride” will debut an original storyline that takes place within the theme park as depicted in Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment’s film, JURASSIC WORLD, on the day the Indominus rex escapes.
The exciting thrill ride will soar to new heights with the addition of several iconic dinosaurs from the movie, including the colossal Indominus rex and the magnificent aquatic Mosasaurus that will mesmerize onlookers in her natural habitat from behind a three million gallon glass encased Aquarium Observatory tank.
“Jurassic World—The Ride” comes to life under the direction of the award-winning and inspired minds at Universal Creative, the Academy Award®-winning special-effects visionaries at Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), a division of Lucasfilm, Ltd., Universal Pictures and acclaimed filmmakers Steven Spielberg, Colin Trevorrow and Frank Marshall.
The aesthetics of “Jurassic World—The Ride” will be dramatically enhanced welcoming guests to a reimagined space reflective of the JURASSIC WORLD films. In addition, there will be a fresh new entry statement, stonework landscaping and a contemporary redesign of the iconic JURASSIC WORLD gates, illuminated with billowing flames.
Engaging and interactive queue-line videos featuring facts and information about the dinosaurs within the ride will set the tone for the expedition ahead, as guests learn more about these imposing prehistoric creatures that first roamed the earth more than 65 million years ago.
Once aboard specially designed rafts, guests will navigate the lush environs of dense vegetation, traversing new areas besieged with towering dinosaurs meandering at just an arm’s length away from visitors. Encounters with such docile creatures as the Stegosaurus and Parasaurolophus will quickly turn awry as predatory Velociraptors and Dilophosaurus begin to wreak havoc, turning guests from spectators to prey. When the Tyrannosaurus rex begins to battle one of the attraction’s new ferocious dinosaurs, the rafts will spill down a treacherous 84-foot waterfall as the sole means of escape.
Located adjacent to the ride will be a new elaborately themed “Raptor Encounter” where Blue, the most beloved Velociraptor from the JURASSIC WORLD franchise, will engage guests in daring face-to-face encounters.
In addition, a new interactive “Dino Play” area will incorporate educational components within an inspired space where children of all ages can explore and excavate giant dinosaur fossils.
With so much to see and do at Universal Studios Hollywood, the new California Neighbor Pass invites guests to experience 175 days of fun for $149 when purchased online. Visit www.UniversalStudiosHollywood.com for more details. Blackout dates and restrictions apply.
The new Jurassic World ride is built upon the basic outline and structure of the original Jurassic Park ride, and much of it will remain the same – including many dinosaur species. One of the largest changes is underwater Mosasaurus viewing atrium, which is believed to have replaced the Ultrasaur Lagoon – and of course, the addition of the Indominus Rex later in the ride.
We can’t wait to see more, especially the new dinosaur animatronics replacing the old ones, which promise to be state-of-the-art, and more lifelike than ever! Further, we can’t help but wonder if any elements of ‘Jurassic Park’ will remain, perhaps in the form of the parks old ruins once the boat is knocked off course?
Be sure to stay tuned for news and updates – such as the opening date – and always, sound off in the comments below!
Get ready to boot up those labs, and extract some DNA, as three new species of dinosaur are hitting Jurassic World Evolution tomorrow (April 17th)! Announced on the PlayStation store, this small DLC pack is listed for a price of $8.25 – check out the trailer below!
Unleash three new carnivorous dinosaurs into your park and witness the chaos they create. These menacing predators will challenge any park manager.
• Herrerasaurus has a long narrow skull with lots of serrated teeth for tearing into the flesh of its prey.
• Acrocanthosaurus features large spines running along it’s back giving it a name that translates to “high-spined lizard”. This large muscular theropod is a force to be reckoned with.
• Proceratosaurus may be a small two-legged dinosaur with a distinctive nasal crest but it is also an ancient relative of the mighty Tyrannosaurus Rex!
No word yet if the DLC adds any other new additions to the game, like missions, gameplay tweaks, or otherwise – so stay tuned for potential updates.
Don’t yet have Jurassic World Evolution? Now’s the perfect time to pick up the park management simulator video game which allows you to play on Isla Nublar, Sorna, and the Muertes Archipelago (also known as the five deaths). You can order the game from Amazon today on the Xbox or PlayStation.
The DLC page has yet to be added to any storefront outside of PlayStation, which can be accessed here. Keep your eyes peeled, as it should hit the appropriate marketplaces soon!
What are your thoughts of the new species being added to Jurassic World Evolution, and what types of additions would you like to see added to the game? Sound off in the comments below, and as always, stay tuned to Jurassic Outpost for the latest news!
You may think you know what the ‘Jurassic World: Live Tour’ is, but you don’t (I know I didn’t). We went behind the scenes yesterday, survived dinosaur encounters, and are thrilled to share the tale.
Stepping in to a soundstage from the busy streets of a city, the sounds of the excited chatter of a crowd greet our team, interlaced with occasional dinosaur roars. Our journey for a sneak peak at the latest Jurassic World adventure has taken us not to Isla Nublar, but rather Root Studios in New York City. Feld Entertainment and everyone involved with the ‘Jurassic World: Live Tour’ excitedly greeted us, eager to lift the veil off this exciting new story within the expanded Jurassic universe.
First thing first. Let’s address the elephant – or rather, the dinosaur – in the room. The Tyrannosaurus Rex used in the shows promo imagery, which fans immediately pointed out was inaccurate, was placeholder. The iconic star of Jurassic Park and Jurassic World is currently being worked on by numerous talented artists, and she will be accurate to the design we know and love from the films. As the animatronic is currently under construction, another large Tyrannosaur (originally crafted for Walking with Dinosaurs) was swapped in. Stay tuned for the true reveal of 43 foot full animatronic, which will surely steal the show both awing and terrifying audiences.
The Story
So, what is the show? The ‘Jurassic World: Live Tour’ is a touring arena spectacular of epic proportions making its world premiere this Fall – but that much you probably know. What you perhaps don’t know are the burning questions, such as what is the story, and is it canon? I entered the event believing I understood what this show was, and was ultimately surprised in the best possible ways by how little I knew. The story spans a block of time, opening just before the downfall of Jurassic World, and we soon witness the rampage of the escaped Indominus Rex from all new perspectives – and that’s only the beginning.
Our main character is Kate Walker (played by Madison Embrey), a Jurassic World scientist who is working to better understand the emotions and feelings of dinosaurs. To do this, she is working with a Troodon – the smartest Jurassic species yet – named Jeanie and a-all-new piece of proprietary tech called the “Dino-Decoder”. The “Dino-Decoder’s” goal is to better understand and predict the emotions of dinosaurs, much like Owen Grady’s goal was to understand and predict their behavior. However, her research comes to a terrifying halt as the Indominus Rex escapes its paddock and the park is thrust into chaos. The audience follows this pandemonium from Kate’s perspective, showing the events on parts of the island we never saw being terrorized by the hazardous hybrid.
You know what happens. The park falls, is evacuated, and abandoned. Flash forward.
A few months after the fall of Jurassic World, our heroes find themselves in New York City dealing with a surprise: Jeanie is still alive. This thrusts them on a quest – perhaps to finish their research, or simply relocate the animal – and uncovers a dangerous conspiracy. InGen hasn’t given up on weaponizing dinosaurs, and they are very interested in Kate’s “Dino-Decoder” and of course, the Troodon. Here comes the curveball which excites me the most – the adventure then moves to a desert in Chile, featuring a secretive and remote InGen facility (some may even call it a ‘Jurassic Outpost’).
This facility has a grim purpose – it houses dinosaurs off of the security of Isla Nublar, and is dedicated to continuing Vic Hoskins IBRIS program for weaponizing Velociraptors. Our heroes confront these mercenaries who have a pack of raptors of their own, which leads to chaos of hero vs villain, dinosaur vs dinosaur, and dinosaur vs human conflict.
The story continues to evolve as the conflict escalates, and eventually the setting circles back to Isla Nublar promising more thrills and adventure synonymous with Jurassic Park.
There Will be Blood
This new Jurassic World story will be a true Jurassic experience, will “not be watered down” and offers the same thrills, freights, and wild dinosaur action you know from the films. While the show is ultimately geared for families of all ages, it was important to all the creators involved that it retained its bite and not shy away from the moments of suspense it’s loved for.
Some of the scenes hinted at included the Indominus Rex on her rampage, Velociraptors hunting Triceratops and leaving battle wounds in real time, and of course, dinosaurs hunting human characters. While the show will make sure it remains appropriate for its younger crowds who will surely flock in faster than a herd of Gallimimus, it will also find creative ways to bring these moments of carnage to life.
It’s Canon
Feld Entertainment worked very closely with Universal Pictures, and the franchise heads like Steven Spielberg, Colin Trevorrow, and Frank Marshall to ensure an authentic Jurassic Park experience, and canon story. They poured over every detail of the story to make sure it did not conflict with past, current, and even future outings and will work as a brand new installment in the Jurassic saga. Things like InGen’s facility location off the island were closely considered, optioning a few different locales, before eventually settling on Chile.
Likewise, they worked closely with Universal Pictures to ensure the all new dinosaur – the Troodon – was granted a canon Jurassic design, with numerous artists working to bring her to life. Further, costumes like the ACU outfits were granted film archival reference for absolute accuracy. Of course, the vehicles were given the same love, bringing the Gyrosphere to life directly off of the props and digital files, while the all new Jeep vehicle was carefully designed.
The filmmakers also worked closely to ensure the tone of show remains true to Jurassic World, from the thrills, awe, and wonder all playing within a fun adventure. Some of the earliest feedback was from Steven Spielberg, suggesting the show should boost its comedic elements, amping up the humor when appropriate alongside the dino-thrills.
The Dinosaurs
The ‘Jurassic World: Live Tour’ will feature 7 different species of ‘dinos’: Troodon, Velociraptor, Triceratops, Stegosaurus, Tyrannosaurus Rex, Indominus Rex, and Pteranodon. Some species have different variants, such as Velociraptor Blue alongside a new suite of Raptors being used by InGen, or the adult Stegosaurus and her baby. Overall the show features well over 20 different dinosaurs, promising a plethora of prehistoric perturbation.
Each dinosaur has been painstakingly brought to life by the artists at Feld Entertainment, and their partner studios, built from the film accurate Industrial Light and Magic files. The accuracy is important to bring these iconic animals to life in the most realistic way possible, seamlessly bringing the dinosaurs from the screen to the stage.
However, this process is not without its unique challenges.
One of the most important things for the ‘Jurassic World: Live Tour’ is making sure that no matter where an audience member is seated, they can fully enjoy the show. To fully realize this, this also means making adjustments to the color contrast, scale size and depth, and other tweaks to the design so the detail you’ve come to expect from the movies is visible in action. These challenges are also met with the technological constraints: will the dinosaur be a full animatronic, or a dinoteer puppet suit?
Dinosaurs like Tyrannosaurus Rex will be a colossal 43ft long full motion animatronic behemoth driven by puppeteers at a control station. However, species like the Troodon will be 100+ lb suit worn by a performer, putting enormous athletic strain on the person bringing that animal to life. I had a chance to wear a 60 lb weight vest yesterday, which is half the weight of Blue, and could only imagine what it would be like inside the narrow constraints of the suit while running around for extended periods and puppeting the dinosaur at the same time.
The show promises the most authentic live action dinosaurs ever created, with unparalleled speed, animation, and authenticity.
The dinosaur who will perhaps even be considered the star of the show by fans is Jeannie the Troodon. Troodon is a species all new to the Jurassic franchise (outside of making an appearance in Telltales 2011 ‘Jurassic Park: the Game’, pictured above). While she is a carnivorous animal, they wanted her to be less intimidating than the Velociraptors, giving her a more inquisitive and almost playful appearance to reflect her intelligence. As she was designed from the ground up with the show in mind, without any prior film designs, they took in the consideration of the constraints of a dinoteer suit while crafting her look.
One of the challenges reportedly was her sickle claws, a trait Troodon is most known for, and how they effected the performers mobility. While Blue herself retained her sickle claws, at this stage in development Jeannies have been removed – however, I am unsure if her design is final, or if it may yet evolve. This tweak has been met with mixed feedback, as the anatomical change would reclassify the species as an entirely different evolutionary branch of animal, and has been mistaken as a overlarge Compsognathus by fans due to their near identical appearance.
Compsognathus confusion aside, Jeannie the Troodon animates fantastically, giving her very bird-like inquisitive and snappy motions one would expect from the species. We also saw Blue in motion, who was incredibly lifelike with her movements, eyes darting from person to person as she snaps at them, and snarled intimidatingly. Further, her skin looked incredibly detailed and real, moving convincingly giving the appearance of organic muscles moving within a living and breathing animal.
As we touched on before, bringing the dinosaurs to life authentic to their film appearance is incredibly important for the show, and the Tyrannosaurus you know and love will be featured. However, as we see her after Jurassic World and before Fallen Kingdom, months of painstaking work went into defining elements like just how well her wounds from the Indominus Rex battle would have healed, and how much scarring should appear. This level of attention has been applied across the board, promising an exciting journey into Jurassic World for all fans.
It should be noted, that while the behind the scenes reel featured ‘Desert Velociraptors’, presumably InGens dinos at their Chile basecamp, we’ve been told the design has been changed. We’re unsure what color the raptors will be, but from our understanding they will be based upon film appearances.
The Show
You know the premise of the story, and the species of dinosaurs, but that’s only scratching the surface of what the show entails. One of the elements Feld Entertainment wanted to fully leverage was organic interactivity – when you visit a theme park with animatronic dinosaurs, they do the same thing every time you ride the ride. However, this show has live puppeted dinosaurs – so they opted to embrace that opportunity, and have the dinosaurs occasionally react to the audience. If a child laughs or screams, a Velociraptor may come over to investigate the noise – or perhaps a Tyrannosaurus Rex may loom over the crowd, and sniff an audience member, sizing them up as a snack.
Characters in the show will enter from all sides, walking out to the stage from wherever the audience may be seated, truly integrating the crowd into the experience and offering a fully 360 degree focus.
The stage will be themed to the setting of the story in real time, with detailed locations, buildings, and other interactive props. Dinosaur cages adorned with InGen insignia are sure to capture your attention, just as park location signs will attract your curiosity. The island will be alive, with greenery, fog, and even a real watering hole where animals will occasionally drink from. Just as the characters are, the stage will truly be alive as it continues to evolve as time progresses.
While dinosaurs may be the star attractions, the full array of characters will perform exhilarating stunts as they survive the shows numerous set pieces of adventure, villainy, and fun. Expect combat, explosions, stunning effects, and vehicular action including motorcycle stunts among rampaging dinosaurs. When the dinosaurs are hungry, they will eat, and that means our heroes and villains are sure to be given a run for their money as the story unfolds.
Characters will go through numerous wardrobe changes as time progresses, not only dressing differently per environment, but eventually showing the wear and tear of the adventure as it unfolds. The has made sure every element you expect from a film of Jurassic’s caliber will come to life, with no pauses between scene changes, mimicking the flow of the films.
It of course wouldn’t be a Jurassic story without new and unique vehicles. On top of the aforementioned motorcycle scenes, a new Jurassic World Jeep vehicle makes an appearance, paying homage to the 1993 classic, alongside a curious dino-capture buggy, and of course, a real-working Gyropshere. This mix of new and familiar vehicles will surely inspire new custom vehicles from fans at home, like the Jurassic Park Motorpool.
But Wait, There’s More
This report is only scratching the surface of what’s to come with the ‘Jurassic World: Live Tour’! Be sure to stay tuned, as we have more content from our visit including video interviews with Chris Nobels (Associate Producer), Dan Shipton and Ross Nicholson (Directors), and of course, Juliette Feld. We will also upload a photo gallery from our experience soon, so you can pour over every detail we had access to, and share in our fun-filled behind the scenes look.
For more from our personal experience, be sure to follow the visiting team on Twitter: Myself, Jennifer, and Josh.
Tickets are on sale now, so be sure to grab the seats you want before they’re gone! I walked into the event yesterday uncertain about what the show was, and if would be anything more than a cute experience for families – after spending time to learn more about the show, and speak candidly with the creators and talent, I couldn’t be more excited for what’s to come! A huge thank you to Feld Entertainment and Mullen Lowe for being accommodating, helpful, and most of all – passionate – while we visited the preview event.
As always, stay tuned for the latest news and sound off in the comments below!
Tickets are now on sale for Jurassic World Live Tour, an exhilarating and unpredictable live, family entertainment experience that will bring the wonder and thrills of Jurassic World to generations of fans in their hometown arenas. The highly anticipated show will host its world premiere this fall in Chicago and continue touring the country with more than 65 stops, including major markets such as New York City, Boston, Los Angeles and Dallas.
Update: The Tyrannosaurus Rex in this image was placeholder, and the Rex in the show will be film accurate!
With unrivaled arena production quality, Jurassic World comes to life against a backdrop of captivating scenery where dinosaurs from the iconic franchise, including fan-favorite Velociraptor Blue and a Tyrannosaurus rex more than 40 feet in length, take center stage. The production features more than 24 film-accurate, life-sized dinosaurs, each custom built with the latest technology, scientific precision and Hollywood studio quality. With scale, speed and ferocity, the animatronic and performer-operated dinosaurs deliver colossal, edge-of-your-seat, live entertainment unlike any other dinosaur experience.
Jurassic World’s unmistakable score adds to the larger-than-life, immersive journey that will captivate fans of all ages. Through a combination of projection and practical scenery, the arena will transform into the dense jungles of Isla Nublar, where real Gyrospheres roll through the valley and scientists work to unravel a corrupt plan and save an all-new dinosaur from a terrible fate. With pulse-pounding stunts and an original, authentic storyline, this show is guaranteed to make memories that will last another 65 million years.
“Working with a world-class production team and Universal filmmakers, we have extended the Jurassic World canon with a new story that can only be told through this live, arena spectacular as we bring full-scale dinosaurs to generations of fans around the globe,” said Juliette Feld Grossman, Chief Operating Officer of Feld Entertainment, the worldwide leader in live, touring family entertainment. “We have maximized the power of everything we do at Feld Entertainment, pushing the boundaries of technology and innovation to ensure audiences have an authentic, awe-inspiring experience. Fans will leave with a sense of wonder, as if they’ve boarded the boat to Isla Nublar and literally stepped into Jurassic World.”
While pre-sale tickets for the upcoming arena show, ‘Jurassic World Live Tour’ went on sale last week, officially ticket sales start today. You can now buy tickets at any of the announced locations without the pre-sale code, and venues will begin to more officially advertise the show, so be sure to grab good seats while you can!
The new species of dinosaur, presumed to be a giant Compsognathus by some fans, has been confirmed as a Troodon named Jeanie by the production. Jeanie is short for ‘Genius’, as she is apparently the smartest Jurassic dinosaur to date – even more so than Velociraptor Blue! Speaking of Velociraptors, Troodons are known for their distinctive sickle claws on their feet – something Jeanie is currently missing. It is unknown if this is an error (or a genetic anomaly the show will discuss) and will be fixed before release, but we’re hoping so, as it’s a flub we don’t typically associate with Jurassic Park.
We’ll be attending a press event in New York City tomorrow morning to get our first look at the new Jurassic World arena show in person – and we will be sure to ask about Jeanies claws, and bring you all the exciting new details and images live as we learn!
Tickets are now on sale for all 2019 and select 2020 U.S. engagements. Visit jurassicworldlivetour.com for tickets and a list of shows and dates near your hometown. Stay current on the latest developments through social media, including instructions on how to access presale codes for future Jurassic World Live Tour productions!
