Month: December 2024

Nearly one year after the film’s announcement, we are finally hearing from Jurassic World: Rebirth writer and Jurassic veteran David Koepp. He joined host Mike DeAngelo on The Discourse Podcast and had great things to say about his return to the dinosaur franchise he helped start.

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From The Discourse:

David Koepp stopped by The Discourse recently to talk about his latest career developments, like working with Steven Soderbergh on “Presence.” But Koepp also teased his return to a major franchise he once helped make a classic: “Jurassic Park.” He writes Gareth Edwards‘ upcoming “Jurassic World: Rebirth,” his first film in the franchise since “The Lost World: Jurassic Park.” So what brought Koepp back to pen a new dinosaur actioner after 25 years?

In Koepp’s words , it was the chance to write a streamlined script in a familiar world. “That was a ball. I had such a nice time on it,” said about writing “Rebirth.” I hope people like the movie because the series tended to change after three, and it felt like, ‘Okay, so let’s change our tone.” Steven [Spielberg] and I were interested in a tone that was maybe more akin to the very first movie. I saw it early on as a mission movie. I like things that are driven by bottles, by containment, you know?”

“And so, developing a limited team and a thing that they have to accomplish – that was all really fun,” Koepp continued. “And it was just fun to return to that world of great adventure backed by real science and write some cool new characters. You don’t often get a chance to have a blank slate and say, ‘What do you want to do?’ There were no franchise expectations other than dinosaurs.”

Koepp even went so far as to create a list of rules the franchise needs to abide by moving forward, which was inspired by the most unlikely of sources. “I actually wrote a list of our nine commandments, which was inspired by Chuck Jones, who had written nine commandments for the Roadrunner cartoons – like all adventures must take place in the American Southwest, gravity is always the coyote’s worst enemy, all products must come from the Acme corporation,” Koepp said. “And so I made a list of things that we had to abide by – one was the events of the previous six movies that cannot be contradicted or denied because I don’t like a retcon. Those are no fun. Two, Humor is oxygen. Science must be real. You know, all the things that we wanted our movie to be. And I just had a great fun doing it with Steven and then with Gareth [Edwards].”

Reflecting on the experience, Koepp described the surreal nature of returning to a franchise 30 years later. “It was trippy to go back to a London soundstage 30 years after I walked onto a Los Angeles soundstage and see the jungle and the people in their jungle gear,” he said. “And it was just all back. It even smelled the same.” But the cast of “Rebirth” are all newcomers to “Jurassic Park” this time around. Edwards’ new film stars Scarlett Johannson, Jonathan Bailey, and Mahersala Ali, and hits theaters on July 2, 2025.

And while the new “Jurassic Park” movie isn’t an official reunion between Koepp and Spielberg, Spielberg’s upcoming UFO blockbuster certainly is. Koepp also had enough time on the podcast to confirm that his upcoming collaboration with the director is a sci-fi adventure reminiscent of Spielberg’s earlier works. “Yes, it is like a sci-fi… Well, I don’t know. I’m not supposed to say. But, yes, it is,” Koepp confirmed. “It does harken back to maybe a different tone than [what he’s done lately]. Something he used to do that he hasn’t done for a little bit.”

In other words, everything old is new again when it comes to Koepp’s recent scriptwriting. Spielberg’s next picture hits theaters on May 15, 2026. – Additional reporting by Mike DeAngelo.

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David Koepp wrote Jurassic Park (1993) and The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997), adapting from Michael Crichton’s novels, and he has been involved in small capacities for ideas, writing, and revisions on multiple films in the franchise since then. He is undoubtably one of the foremost voices on the Jurassic franchise story and certainly has a fantastic resumé within the series.

It is truly great to hear him talk about Jurassic in such detail again after all this time, and to hear about the ease and enjoyment in his return to collaboration with Steven Spielberg. His passion for the franchise is still clear, as he even introduced his own new “franchise commandments”! I can’t think of too many names who would be a better choice to create a set of Jurassic commandments.

1. The events of the previous 6 movies cannot be contradicted or denied

2. Humor is oxygen

3. Science must be real

Great adventure and real science. Very sound guidelines for a franchise like Jurassic. What are the other six? I love his words about returning to a Jurassic set after all this time, and being a part of developing a new story from a blank slate. What he had to say about the other trilogies is also generally on point:

“…the series tended to change after three, and it felt like, ‘Okay, so let’s change our tone.”

I can’t wait to see what “tone” Koepp has helped create for Rebirth, and how those Jurassic commandments play out. What would your commandments be?

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You can read the full extent of Koepp’s Jurassic comments and listen to the full episode of The Discourse Podcast here. He also spoke about the upcoming UFO event film he is writing for Steven Spielberg, set to release Summer 2026, plus his work and friendship with Steven Soderbergh and Kevin Bacon.

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As the Wicked press tour and other promotional events continue, Jurassic World: Rebirth stars Jonathan Bailey and Scarlett Johansson have shared more details and personal feelings about their time filming this summer, their experiences with the Jurassic franchise, and the run-up to the seventh film next year.

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Scarlett Johansson joined NBC’s TODAY for her “milestone birthday” recently to discuss her career, upcoming projects, and her experience directing for the first time:

When asked about Jurassic and the upcoming film, Johansson shared:

“Jurassic World: Rebirth, we just finished it. I feel like we’re still shooting it. We shot it in Thailand, Malta, and the UK, and it was a whirlwind. We shot for the last five months or something like that. My life-long dream has always been to participate in Jurassic in any way – I’ll do your craft service, your dinosaur motion-capture, I was like, put the dots all over me I’ll be that person. It was… It was a crazy ride, and it’s coming out, like, tomorrow basically.”

Her excitement and passion for the Jurassic franchise have been evident in every interview since she was announced as cast, and it’s great to hear about her experience during production. She certainly had nice things to say about her future Jurassic co-star and current Wicked star Jonathan Bailey as well. Water finds a way.

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Jonathan Bailey spoke to Who What Wear about his career, fashion, Wicked, and upcoming performances:

From Who What Wear, Bailey on joining the Jurassic franchise in Rebirth:

Following Richard II, Bailey will return to the big screen with Scarlett Johansson and Mahershala Ali in Jurassic World: Rebirth, playing paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis. A passing of the torch from Wicked co-star Jeff Goldblum, perhaps? We’ll have to wait and see, but Bailey does call Goldblum’s Jurassic Park character Dr. Malcolm the “rizz king” and credits the actor’s performances for keeping him “enthralled and titillated.” “If I can achieve half of what he did in the original Jurassic, I’ll be very happy,” he adds.

What Bailey can say about his own experience at this time is how excited he is to be joining the major franchise given how deeply nostalgic it is for him. Jurassic Park was the first film Bailey saw in the cinema with his family. He gets goosebumps thinking back on that time. “I just remember feeling so alive,” he says. “It’s a bit like Wicked [and] going back to singing and dancing. [I’m] now going back to one of these iconic experiences that I found so inspiring then, to be able to infiltrate that world.” To say Bailey is excited about this movie would be an understatement. “The idea of the John Williams theme playing under trotting through some grass fields chasing a dinosaur, you can’t get more mind-blowing and eye-popping than that,” he says.

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Needless to say, Scarlett Johansson is a massive star, and Jonathan Bailey is becoming one before our eyes. The Jurassic franchise has impacted so many artists and filmmakers, and it’s apt that the franchise’s next big names have such deep connections to the films. Both have incredible acting skills and have built quite the portfolio for themselves. Jurassic World: Rebirth boasts one of the best casts of any 2025 film, which should help it attract audiences across the globe.

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