How Will the Jurassic Franchise Continue After Jurassic World Dominion?

The Jurassic Park franchise was created by author Michael Crichton and brought to life on the big screen by filmmaker Steven Spielberg. For decades it has captivated audiences thanks to its thrilling blend of science fiction and action. Its themes act as a huge draw for people all over the world, as many people have a fascination with dinosaurs.

Thanks to extremely shrewd marketing and cross-franchising on numerous platforms; the Jurassic series has been one of the most successful ever on the big screen. The big question now is how will it continue after Jurassic World Dominion wrapped up the latest trilogy.

Jurassic Park Sparked a Sprawling Franchise

From 1993’s Jurassic Park to the latest installment, Jurassic World Dominion in 2022; the franchise has not only been a box office success but has also had a significant cultural impact. After the first film became one of the biggest cinema hits ever; the franchise led to several sequels, a vast amount of merchandise, video games, and even a theme park.

The franchise’s accomplishments can attributed to its combination of cutting-edge special effects; compelling storytelling, and relatable themes about the dangers of playing god and the consequences of man’s actions.

The movies have flourished thanks to the sheer scope of the content matter; with hundreds of dinosaurs for filmmakers to choose from when coming up with new concepts. Writers have also conjured up innovative ways to introduce the problems that we would face if dinosaurs; and humans were ever able to interact with one another.

In the modern age, films can’t just become global smash hits on their cinematic elements alone. Universal Pictures was aware of this; and its work on marketing the Jurassic Park franchise in as many places as possible was a masterstroke.

Role of the Gaming Industry:

The gaming industry a massive help in pushing Jurassic World to become the fourth-highest-grossing movie of all time when it released. Alongside the 2015 picture, there was Jurassic World: The Game and later, Jurassic World Evolution.

Jurassic Park slot games have been around since the early days of the industry; with Jurassic Park Gold at PartyCasino being one of the most recent editions. The site is the top recommended pay-by-mobile casino in 2023, and it won the award for Casino of the Year in 2017 and 2018. This meant that a lot of players will have seen the Jurassic Park slots on offer and may have tempted to watch the new trilogy after playing them.

Jurassic World Brought About New Levels of Success

The original Jurassic Park trilogy was one of the most successful sets of movies of its era. Jurassic Park, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, and Jurassic Park III made around $1.9 billion at the worldwide box office. There was a long hiatus without any more offerings in the franchise before Jurassic World was released; and it is now clear that the studio waited for the opportune moment to bring it back with a bang.

Over the course of the original movies, revenue steadily declined with each installment. That’s one of the reasons why Jurassic Park IV was never made at the time. Another factor was that there were loads of ideas for a fourth picture that never quite seemed to fit with the model. For example, the possibility of dino-human hybrids was even tossed into the mixer at one point.  

Jurassic World was released 14 years after Jurassic Park III; and it turns out that this was the perfect length of time to wait. The reboot was able to draw in older viewers with its nostalgic elements; but it also pulled in a whole new crowd because of its updated CGI and fresh storyline. Nobody could have predicted just how successful Colin Trevorrow’s debut title would be, however.

The 2015 picture cleaned up at the box office and earned more than $1.6 billion worldwide. This nearly put it on par with the original trilogy in terms of earnings. Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom and Jurassic World Dominion then went on to earn $1.3 billion and $1 billion respectively. The latter two offerings picked up many negative reviews; but their commercial success highlights the power of the Jurassic franchise model.

Would be Crazy Not to Continue With More Films

The modern movie industry is packed full of choices for viewers, and it can sometimes be hard navigating all the options available. Many excellent standalone films fall by the wayside in the streaming era because there is simply not enough time to watch them all. Therefore, the franchise model is a winning strategy.

By following up on previous pictures, viewers already have an idea of what they are going to get with a new offering. With the Marvel Cinematic Universe, for instance, each of the pictures sticks to a similar structure and viewers can see their favorite actors and characters repeatedly. The Jurassic movies have continued to bring in viewers because people are already invested in the franchise and are hungry to see more.

After the incredible success of the Jurassic Park trilogy and then the Jurassic World trilogy; it would make zero sense for Universal Pictures to shelve the franchise and never return to it again. However, it does need to take a step back and consider the best strategy to allow it to thrive in the future.

Perhaps this will mean that there is another long break between films. Some reports suggest that filmmakers are already trying to brainstorm topics for a new movie; but that this offering would be part of a fresh trilogy and would not follow directly from Dominion.

Maybe it would make sense to wait and see what new technology comes to the table. Virtual reality, for instance, could completely transform the movie industry and give viewers a brand-new way to experience dinosaurs.

Conclusion:

Right now, there is a lot of uncertainty about the Jurassic Park franchise.  It’s unlikely that there will be any news about how it will continue for a while; but it’s widely expected that there will be a new trilogy at some point.