Author: Josh Evans

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom crosses $400 million domestically

Posted on by Josh Evans

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom has proven to be a massive box office hit not just from a worldwide standpoint, but also domestically as it is crossing $400 million in it’s 41st day of release. It becomes the 15th fastest film to hit $400 million all-time.

By crossing $400 million domestically it becomes the 3rd film in the Jurassic franchise along with Jurassic Park ($402.5 million) and Jurassic World ($652.3 million) to hit this mark unadjusted for inflation. Though Jurassic Park crossed $400 million with the help of the 2013 3D re-release.

By the end of this upcoming weekend Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom will pass Jurassic Park unadjusted to become the second highest grossing film domestically in the series. It is also currently the second highest grossing worldwide film in the series, having amassed more than $1.24 billion as of today.

Once it passes $403 million, it’ll be Universal/Comcast Corp.’s third-biggest (unadjusted) domestic grosser, behind E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial ($434m counting the 2002 reissue) and Colin Trevorrow’s Jurassic World ($652m in 2015). And if it passes the $413m gross of Wonder Woman (which seems likely), it’ll have the biggest domestic gross for any non-Disney release since The Hunger Games: Catching Fire ($424m) in late 2013. With $1.237 billion worldwide, it is already the biggest non-Disney release since Jurassic World ($1.672b) in the summer of 2015.

While Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom has earned less than Jurassic World did in 2015, the numbers it has done are massive for any film. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below and on our forums.

Source: Forbes

Colin Trevorrow interview: How Whitney and Vance evolved into Claire and Owen in Jurassic World

Posted on by Josh Evans

Colin Trevorrow, who wrote and directed Jurassic World and wrote Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom spoke to BDH Network in an exclusive interview in regards to Bryce Dallas Howard and her character Claire Dearing in the Jurassic World films. He talked about the process of evolving the female lead character from the original Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver script, the process of hiring Bryce for the role, how Claire got her name and even touched on what we can expect from Claire in Jurassic World 3, among other topics.

The very first question posed to Colin was about what the female lead character was like in the Jurassic Park 4 script that Universal Pictures had originally green-lighted for a June 2014 release. The original script was co-written by husband and wife writers Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver before Colin was even hired to direct the fourth installment of the franchise. Colin and writing partner Derek Connolly rewrote the script from scratch while incorporating some important story elements that Steven Spielberg had requested, such as an operational park. The movie was delayed one year to a June 2015 release to allow proper time to prepare for the finalized script and story. But had the Jaffa and Silver script been filmed, our leads would not have been Claire and Owen, but instead Whitney and Vance. It also seems like the idea of “training raptors” would have been taken a lot further than what we get on screen in Jurassic World or even Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.

The lead character was a guy called Vance, who ultimately became Owen in our story. The film opened with Vance jumping out of a helicopter with a pack of raptors on a military raid of a drug dealer’s compound in Colombia. It was a different approach. But there was a character who had one or two scenes, the manager for the corporate side of the park. I think her name was Whitney. She was an antagonist to the hero, putting up red tape.

Colin goes on in the interview to describe the process of how casting director, John Papsidera, set up a Skype call between him and Bryce to discuss her joining the film. Also elaborating the relationship she had with Spielberg and that she was already part of the “Amblin Family”. Spielberg himself was also confident that she could “create this specific character better than anyone”.

As for how Claire Dearing got her name it turns out it was a bit of a group effort with Colin choosing “Claire” and Derek choosing “Dearing”. Colin felt the name of Claire was warm and loving and Derek chose Dearing as a reference to her character being very endearing.

I chose Claire, it felt hard on the surface but ultimately warm and loving. Derek chose Dearing, which is a very Derek thing to do. He loves those Dickensian names that suggest a bit about the character, push the viewer in the direction the author wants them to go. She may seem sharp-edged at first, but ultimately she’s very endearing.

Of course no one should be surprised that the characters of Claire and Owen will be returning for the final installment in the trilogy, which is set to hit theaters on June 11, 2021. Colin and newcomer Emily Carmichael are working on the script as we speak based on a story Colin created with Derek Connolly. While Colin couldn’t share much on the sixth installment of the franchise, he did reiterate that Claire and Owen will have a lot on their plate now that dinosaurs are loose on the mainland and that other dinosaurs and DNA samples were sold or moved to other parts of the world.

She and Owen will have bigger conflicts at hand, with shared responsibilities and a shared need for redemption. That’s a compelling story I’m excited to tell.

To see the full answers Colin had for the questions featured here and other intriguing questions about Bryce and her character Claire, please visit BDH Network and view their visit digital magazine. Also, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below and on our forums.

Source: BDH Network

Legendary Entertainment May Not Be Involved with Jurassic World 3

Posted on by Josh Evans

Legendary Entertainment is leaving Universal Pictures faster than Arcadia left Isla Nublar in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. In 2013 Legendary signed a 5 year co-financing contract with Universal, and while that deal technically doesn’t end until December 31st of this year, Legendary is set to re-join their former distribution partner Warner Brothers.

Universal had long been expected not to renew the contact with Legendary and today’s development is further proof of that. The Detective Pikachu film that is being created by Legendary was set to be marketed and distributed worldwide by Universal in 2019, but will now shift to Warner Brothers with the expiring deal. It is also likely that Legendary will no longer be involved with the Jurassic World films and likely will not be attached to 2021’s Jurassic World 3 (not it’s final title). It has not been officially confirmed yet, but it is most likely the case with the expiring deal.

“The Universal-Legendary relationship had sputtered over the past year, culminating with Legendary’s Dwayne Johnson starrer Skyscraper, which sources say will ultimately be a money loser. Legendary also has put up large chunks of the budget for most of the films in Universal’s slate over the past four years, including summer hit Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, which has earned $1.2 billion to date. Legendary has a stake in BlacKkKlansman, a film from Universal’s Focus Features label. That would mark its final film with Universal.”

During the deal with Legendary, the studio helped finance portions of the budgets for 2015’s Jurassic World and this year’s Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. Jurassic World exploded at the box office with $1.671 billion and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom is currently at $1.204 billion, and that number continues to grow daily. Unadjusted for inflation, the Jurassic World films are the biggest films that Legendary has even been attached to.

Legendary is currently heavily pushing their “MonsterVerse” which features iconic cinematic creatures such as King Kong and Godzilla. But even the first two installments, 2014’s Godzilla and 2017’s Kong: Skull Island, combined worldwide ($1.095 billion) is less than what either Jurassic World or Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom did on their own. Granted though, both MonsterVerse movies are box office successes and made a profit, just not to the massive levels of the Jurassic films.

But even with Legendary helping to cover the costs of those films, things were not always sunny between the two studios. It had been reported that Universal had become annoyed with Legendary, specifically with former chairman and CEO Thomas Tull, who tried to take more credit for the success of Jurassic World than they had earned. Legendary only helped co-finance the Jurassic films and had no creative input on the films themselves or their marketing.

Several sources say there has been strain, in part because Tull kicked off the deal in 2014 with a couple of clunkers that he put through Universal’s distribution system and then upset some at the studio who feel he has indulged a bad habit of wrapping himself in credit for hits that he merely helped finance. In this case, the film at issue was the biggest movie of the year to date, Jurassic World.

Jurassic World 3 appears like it will be the first film in the Jurassic World trilogy that will not have the help of co-financing from Legendary, but that is nothing to be worried about for the film itself. Universal might cover the costs of the film themselves or may even partner up with another small studio for co-financing on the project. But as of right now only Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment are attached to the final film in the new trilogy.

With Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom joining the rare billion dollar club, it is likely Universal will spare no expense on the budget and marketing costs for Jurassic World 3. With rumors of more of the classic Jurassic cast returning for the next installment, it wouldn’t be surprising if the budget approached or crossed $200 million. Jurassic World 3, which will be released on June 11, 2021 will be directed by Colin Trevorrow who is also writing the screenplay with franchise newcomer Emily Carmichael.

Please let us know your thoughts in the comments below and on our forums.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

The Simpsons Halloween episode to spoof Jurassic World

Posted on by Josh Evans

The Simpsons are returning for their 30th season and will be airing their 29th Halloween special, Treehouse of Horror XXIX. The episode will air this fall, though no specific air date has been announced as of this moment, and part of the episode will be a spoof on Jurassic World.

Homer wins an oyster-eating contest against the mythical Cthulhu. Springfield is overrun by plant body-snatchers, Lisa finally snaps, and Mr. Burns opens a retirement home with some Jurassic upgrades.

With Comic-Con in San Diego this weekend, a special poster for Treehouse of Horror XXIX was created for the event and can be seen below. The poster features the Simpsons family in a Jurassic World style Gyrosphere in a park called “Geriatric Park”.

Will you be checking out the Halloween special of The Simpsons this year to see the Jurassic World spoof? Please let us know your thoughts in the comments below and on our forums.

Source: IndieWire

Chris Pratt to parody his Jurassic World character in The LEGO Movie 2

Posted on by Josh Evans

At Comic-Con today, Warner Brothers hosted a panel with the cast of the upcoming The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part including Jurassic World’s own Chris Pratt. He voiced the lead character Emmet Brickowski in the hit 2014 film, The LEGO Movie, and returns for the 2019 sequel. But Emmet won’t be the only character Pratt will be voicing in the sequel, he will also be voicing a new character named Rex Dangervest. Based on footage screened at Comic-Con today, Rex Dangervest appears to be a hybrid of a character between Owen Grady and Star Lord from The Guardians of the Galaxy.

Emmet ventures into space on his own and we meet a brand new character: Rex Dangervest, also voiced by Chris Pratt. Rex is a galaxy-saving archaeologist and, uh, raptor trainer. In other words, he is the “cool” version of Chris Pratt, while Emmet is the nerdy, Parks and Recreation version. Still, they quickly become buds – Rex has heard of “the special” and is ready for a team-up. They even have a similar fashion sense, which Rex’s raptor buddies pick up instantly. “Vest friends!” one of them growls in subtitles.


While the Owen Grady character himself won’t be appearing in the LEGO Movie sequel, Rex Dangervest sounds like a great parody character that Jurassic fans should check out. The LEGO Movie 2: The Second Part hits theaters on February 9, 2019.

What do you think of Chris Pratt parodying Owen Grady in next year’s The LEGO Movie sequel? Please let us know your thoughts in the comments below and on our forums.

Source: Slash Film

Mattel’s VP of Boys Design Ed Duncan talks Jurassic World toys

Posted on by Josh Evans

If there is one thing most Jurassic fans can agree on is that the new Mattel Jurassic World toys have been a massive upgrade over the Hasbro line for the 2015 film. Long gone are the screw holes and in came human figures, realisitc looking dinosaurs including even some with real feel skin. Ed Duncan, Mattel’s VP of Boys Design is partially to thank as the head of design for the Jurassic World toys. He took some time to answer a few questions about the new toy line on the Mattel website.

When was the first time you saw a Jurassic film, and what was your experience with it?

Jurassic Park came out 25 years ago, and I think that was my first year as a toy designer. Everybody was excited about it because this was the first time you saw photorealistic CG animation in a film, and it was jaw-dropping.

It was a very formative experience seeing Jurassic, and subsequently, I actually worked at [another toy company] on a preschool Jurassic line in the late ‘90s. In fact, I remember the first time I ever came to L.A. was for a meeting with Universal about [the line], and a couple of funny things happened. The first thing was that I was carrying a box of toys in my hands, and I couldn’t open the door. Somebody holds the door open for me, and I glanced over, and it was Steven Spielberg. And then the other thing was I remember thinking, “I wonder if I’ll ever come back to L.A. for anything?” And here I am, 25 years later—I live here, and I’m the head of design for Jurassic World toys.

What do you want kids to experience when they play with this new line?

One of the things that makes dinosaurs cool is their size, and size is displayed relative to other things. If you just make a dinosaur by itself and aren’t paying attention to how big it is compared to anything else in the line, you don’t get the credit for how big or small anything in the story is. So we wanted to make sure that we had a good, compelling action figure representing a six-foot human to scale everything off of, because the size of your T.rex is only impressive if it’s in comparison to something that is recognizable. So being able to make figures and Jeeps, and then show how much bigger your T.rex and your Mosasaurus are to those is what makes those things seem much cooler.

Check out the full interview with Ed Duncan on Mattel’s website. Also, please let us know your thoughts in the comments below and on our forums.

Source: Mattel

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom roars past $1 billion worldwide!

Posted on by Josh Evans

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom officially joined the exclusive $1 billion club! It became the 35th film of all-time that has grossed at least $1 billion at the worldwide box office. It also becomes the third Jurassic film to reach this milestone along with the first installment Jurassic Park (1993) and the fourth installment Jurassic World (2015).

When all is said and done, Fallen Kingdom will be the second highest worldwide grossing film (unadjusted) of the entire series behind Jurassic World, which grossed $1.671 billion just three years ago. Jurassic Park did not cross $1 billion during it’s initial run in 1993, but thanks to it’s re-release in 3D in 2013 it hit that milestone and now stands at $1.029 billion. The Lost World: Jurassic Park amassed $618.6 million in 1997 and Jurassic Park III brought in a franchise low $368.8 million in 2001. The entire film franchise has now totaled $4.68+ billion and the number continues to grow each day.

While Fallen Kingdom won’t match the massive total of Jurassic World’s franchise high, reaching $1 billion is no small feat. It is only the third film of 2018 so far to cross the mark after Black Panther and Avengers: Infinity War earlier this year. The film will continue to add to the worldwide total over the Summer and will open in it’s final territory, Japan, next Friday July 13th. In 2015, Jurassic World earned $74.59 million in Japan and there is a chance Fallen Kingdom could post similiar numbers there.

Fallen Kingdom will likely finish it’s worldwide run in the $1.1 to 1.2 billion range. Roughly a 28-34% drop from Jurassic World, which is still pretty impressive since the fourth film had the build up of a 14 year wait, a fully functioning park and the nostalgic factor of the original film. It also didn’t hurt that it offered film fans something “different” in an era dominated by superheros and Star Wars movies. Speaking of Star Wars, in comparison, The Last Jedi saw roughly a 36% decline from The Force Awakens.

Jurassic World 3, which will be released on June 11, 2021 will try to become the fourth film in the franchise to join the $1 billion club. What do you think of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom hitting the $1 billion mark and do you think the sixth installment will also be able to make that much? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below and on our forums.

Source: Forbes

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom remains #1 at the Box Office adding an estimated $60 million

Posted on by Josh Evans

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom officially hit domestic theaters on June 22nd and earned the second best opening in Universal Pictures history with $148 million (down $2 million from the $150 million Sunday estimate). It was easily the #1 film and it remained the #1 film during it’s second weekend since release with an estimated $60 million, a 59.9% drop from last weekend. The estimated domestic total for Fallen Kingdom stands at $264.79 million.

The estimated $60 million is also the second largest second weekend for a film in Universal Pictures history. The top second weekend was Jurassic World three years ago when it fell only 49% and earned $106.588 million. It just narrowly edged out Furious 7, which grossed $59.586 million during it’s second weekend in 2015.

Overseas the film continued to do well and has now taken it’s international total to $667.6 million. Adding that with the estimated domestic total of $60 million, it’s worldwide estimated total is $932.39 million. Fallen Kingdom will soon be joining the exlusive rank of films that have grossed at least $1 billion worldwide.

Let us know your thoughts in the comments below and on our forums.

Source: Box Office Mojo, Box Office Pro

Jurassic World themed cafes pop up in Japan for a limited time

Posted on by Josh Evans

Japan is the last country where Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom will be released, on July 13th. Via Bloody Disgusting, to help celebrate the film’s release, Jurassic World themed cafes are being opened for a limited run in Tokyo and Osaka and are selling Jurassic World inspired food.

The Japanese website Natalie brings the limited time pop-up cafe to our attention this week, and they note that it’s open from July 5th to August 6th in Tokyo at Ikebukuro Parco, and from August 10th to September 30th in Osaka at Shinsaibashi Open in 161.

The fully Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom-inspired menu includes items such as “Mososaurus Soda,” “Volcano Curry,” “Jurassic World Burger” and even dinosaur cupcakes!

Make sure to visit the website Natalie for a full gallery of some of the food items being offered at these cafes.

Let us know your thoughts in the comments below and on our forums.

Source: Bloody Disgusting, Natalie

New 1/6 scale ‘Jurassic World’ Blue statue from Prime 1 Studio Now Available to Pre-order!

Posted on by Josh Evans

In a press release sent to us from Chronicle Collectibles, Prime 1 Studio’s Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom 1/6 scale Blue statue is now available for pre-order on their website.

“When Prime 1 showed off a tease of their Blue statue just a few short weeks ago, fans across the United States and around the world have been desperate to order it. As the official licensee for the Jurassic World franchise in North America and other select territories, we are pleased to announce we’ve worked out a distribution deal for this piece and several more from Prime 1 Studio. We certainly want the fan community to have as much access as possible to high-end Jurassic Park and Jurassic World collectibles and this Blue statue is a prime example.” – Robert Davis, Social Media & Events Outreach

The artist behind this project was Steve Jubinville, modeling Lead/Asset Supervisor of Industrial Light & Magic for the Jurassic World franchise. Fans can expect the product to be the most movie accurate you will ever find in this scale. This 1/6 Scale Blue statue measures approximately 16 inches tall and 26 inches wide and is based on one of the iconic scenes. Fans should get ready to own such a memorable character from this summer’s hottest blockbuster!

Both the Regular and Exclusive versions of this statue are available for pre-order. The key differences between these two versions is that the Exclusive version is a very limited run and includes a gold-colored Baby Blue 1/6 statue.

Measuring 16 inches tall and 26 inches wide, the regular version is priced at $699 and the exclusive version with the 4 inch Antique Gold Baby Blue is priced at $749. The statue is eligible for Chronicle’s interest-free payment plans and is estimated to ship in the 4th Quarter of 2019.

Pre-order Now!

Prime 1 is a top studio when it comes to collectibles, and their entry to Jurassic is nothing but great news. They’ve already teased numerous upcoming statues on their Instagram, so be prepared to spare no expense.

Let us know your thoughts in the comments below and on our forums.

Source: Prime 1 Stuido, Chronicle Collectibles