Deadline announced on Tuesday that Rogue One director Gareth Edwards will direct the latest Jurassic World movie. The news comes after it was recently revealed David Leitchwalked away from the film after being in early talks to direct it. Edwards is currently in final negotiations with Universal, meaning a deal should be closed relatively soon.
According to Deadline, Edwards managed to easily impress producers Steven Spielberg and Frank Marshall, who were behind the original franchise, the director was quickly given an offer. Pre-production is supposed to quickly get underway once the deal is complete. As previously reported, the new Jurassic World movie will be a brand new, fresh take on the Jurassic films. None of the previous cast members are expected to reprise their roles.
The Jurassic World franchise has been a huge box office success for Universal. The first film, which debuted in 2015, went on to earn an impressive $1.6 billion at the worldwide box office. The sequel, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, released three years later, and earned $1.3 billion. The final film in the trilogy, Jurassic World: Dominion, released in 2022 and managed to still bring in $1.1 billion despite COVID-19’s impact on the box office.
The latest Jurassic World movie will hit theaters on July 2nd, 2025.
On Monday, it was revealed that director David Leitch was in talks to helm a brand new Jurassic World movie for Universal. At the time, it was noted that talks were still early, and a deal had not officially been made. Unfortunately, it looks like, as of Friday, Leitch is no longer in talks to direct the movie. The Hollywood Reporter confirmed on Friday that the Deadpool 2 director has exited the project.
It’s said the deal ultimately broke down due to a difference in vision between Leitch and Universal. With a release date already set, Universal will need to move quickly in order to secure a new director if it hopes to keep the movie on track for its release next year.
The Jurassic World franchise has been a huge box office success for Universal. The first film, which debuted in 2015, went on to earn an impressive $1.6 billion at the worldwide box office. The sequel, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, released three years later, and earned $1.3 billion. The final film in the trilogy, Jurassic World: Dominion, released in 2022 and managed to still bring in $1.1 billion despite COVID-19’s impact on the box office.
The next Jurassic World film is currently slated to hit theaters on July 2, 2025.
Universal Pictures has set its sights on Deadpool 2 director, David Leitch, to direct its forthcoming Jurassic World reboot. The news was revealed on Monday by Deadline, with the outlet reporting talks are still in the early stages. Should the deal take, Leitch will direct from a screenplay by David Koepp.
Along with eyeing a director for the next Jurassic World film, Universal has also set a release date for the next installment. The untitled film will hit theaters on July 2, 2025. The new movie will be a “fresh new take” in the franchise and will not see any of the stars of Jurassic World or Jurassic Park return.
Steven Spielberg will executive produce through his Amblin Entertainment banner. While Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley are also on board to produce. Per Deadline, Leitch and Kelly McCormick will also produce through 87North.
The Jurassic World franchise has been a huge box office success for Universal. The first film, which debuted in 2015, went on to earn an impressive $1.6 billion at the worldwide box office. The sequel, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, released three years later, and earned $1.3 billion. The final film in the trilogy, Jurassic World: Dominion, released in 2022 and managed to still bring in $1.1 billion despite COVID-19’s impact on the box office.
It looks like we’re taking a trip to Atlantis. Sadly, it isn’t an adaptation of the iconic Disney film, even if it almost seems expected they’d at least try to bring it into live-action but an original story by Jurassic World‘s Colin Trevorrow. Not just that, he’s also set to team up with House of the Dragon‘s Charmaine DeGraté, who will co-write and executive produce the project. The deal was finalized with Skydance which will see Trevorrow also direct the film titled Atlantis.
Trevorrow‘s Metronome Film Company is producing and it seems that this project was already developing for some time. Universal was initially involved but had to return the project to Trevorrow due to turnaround,w which gave Skydance the perfect opportunity to nab it. It does seem like a previous draft was already finished with Alien: Covenant‘s Dante Harper having been involved.
It seems that the base fantasy adventure style will remain exploring the advanced civilization that was sunk. There’s no word yet though how exactly this film will tackle the iconic mythological city and if they’ll take a specific direction with the project to make it stand out from previous iterations. This is also the first non-Jurassic World project for Trevorrow in a while which just released the third entry last year. Perhaps Atlantis is an underwater dino theme park that was never revealed until now.
We’ve entered a new era of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The franchise continues to grow in new ways while showing some slowdown in its box office development. The films are still successful and big hits, but they’re not taking the box office completely by storm. Discussions online are talking about a franchise that is “watering down” what it has to offer while general audiences according to the Internet are facing fatigue.
Films are seemingly losing momentum at theaters as people question how the franchise can continue moving forward and likely end in the coming years. Two iconic franchises make a grand return and dominate theaters with stronger legs than any frontloaded Marvel film. Things are looking shaky for Marvel Studios after the release of Avengers: Age of Ultron and Ant-Man in 2015.
Oh wait, it’s not 2015 but 2023 has just started. We’ve entered Phase 5 of the MCU with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania about to release in theaters. The only major difference is the effect of the pandemic has taken its toll on theaters during 2020 and 2021, the last year seemed like an uplifting new direction for cinema. We saw some truly great films ranging in variety with some surprise big hits in Top Gun Maverick and Avatar: The Way of Water. Two nostalgia-filmed films making a comeback with a legacy sequel.
Instead of enjoying this newfound momentum at the box office and in cinematic offerings, it feels like we’re retreading old ground once again. Marvel didn’t take the top spot this year at the box office and so we’re analyzing the sheer success of these two entries plus the Jurassic World threequel also banking on the nostalgia of a returning cast. It’s great to see these films flourish after years of uncertainty for non-IP-driven projects but there’s a feeling in the air that we’ve gone through this all again.
2015 saw the release of two major legacy sequels. Jurassic World returned us to a dinosaur-filled world that we last saw in 1993; a sequel 22 years in the making. That same year, December saw the breakout release of Star Wars Episode 7: The Force Awakens which brought us back to a true sequel of the iconic franchise just under new Disney leadership to pull in $2 billion worldwide over Christmas. Jurassic World didn’t do so shabby either with a strong $1.6B.
Ironically, here we are again with Avatar: The Way of Water releasing in December under a now Disney-owned banner on its way to passing $2B with strong legs at the box office. Earlier in the year, Top Gun Maverick pulled in $1.4B at the box office as a sequel to a long-dormant franchise with a few more extra years on its back with Tom Cruise at the forefront selling the film.
It feels like a strange sense of déjá-vu, especially if you take into account the discussions surrounding Marvel and superhero fatigue. While some points of these discussions have evolved, it’s still the same argumentation at its basis. Comparisons were drawn to how Marvel needs to evolve or take a step back; now especially popular with its Disney+ streaming offerings doing what many have begged the Netflix shows and ABC series do years ago.
We have comparisons drawn to how Jurassic World makes a better showcase of franchise building than Marvel. It’s something a recent article does as well with Avatar: The Way of Water which is a hard comparison to make if you consider one has multiple franchises under its belt since 2008 and the other had its first sequel release after 13 years; as such only really getting started as a franchise. We have no idea if Avatar will work long-time as the charm of exploring Pandora could also one day lose its vanity.
What we should learn and not repeat from 2015 is what these franchises can learn from each other. Long-running franchises always hit a slump but even Marvel Studios is back to performing as they did during Phase 2. Their last phase had that extra build-up momentum towards what was deemed a “finale” of sorts for the Infinity Saga. They also serve a very different purpose if seen as films. So, they can only learn and evolve from each other if we take the right lessons from everything rather than chasing coattails once again.
Both franchises build familiarity in different ways. Marvel creates a cast of characters that draw in their audience and become selling points to try out new parts of their franchise. The MCU has always been misunderstood as one singular franchise, but in reality, it’s just the umbrella term for multiple franchises or ongoing stories. Yes, some crossovers can interrupt specific stories but we’ve seen the “you need to do your homework” complaint back in 2015 when people complained that “they could’ve just called the Avengers” in every self-contained story or franchise.
Will Marvel run out of steam? At one point, it’s very likely but they still remain strong performers in the market. Even with a big drop in its second weekend, some of the MCU releases in 2022 showed stronger legs later on; something that surprised me even with the Disney+ re-release always imminent due to COVID’s influences on consumer behavior and Bob Chapek‘s desire to grow its streaming service no matter what.
Yet, one cannot deny that it’s also the franchise that has shown the most growth throughout the years. There’s a reason it cannot be emulated, just as much as why Avatar’s performance won’t easily be replicated just because Marvel doesn’t release a film for a few years. They’re a production studio that works independently and has its own quotas to meet. James Cameron released a film in the 20th Century that also is responsible for many other franchises.
If we compare 2022 and 2015, films with massive worldwide performances and impressive legs have something in common: nostalgia. They are legacy sequels to projects that have been long dormant. They make good use of familiar ground while adding some additional elements to still make them stand out. They feel like “self-contained” stories but they are also continuations that anyone can rewatch. Of course, it’s easier to just catch up on one film to get ready for another, but that tune changes once Avatar 7 releases and we have six almost three-hour films to catch up on.
Of course, it’s conjecture to some degree but there’s still a curious thread of these major performers that are “leaving Marvel in the dust” with their strong box office legs. 2015 and 2022 are just so eerily similar with general discussions and it’s no wonder franchise fatigue would set in with a franchise that has been a consistent part since 2008. No one can blame them for feeling a bit overwhelmed at times and if the MCU still remains a strong performer, we’ll likely have this exact same discussion once Phase 8 kicks off with Stinger and the New Avengers.
It’s that time of year – time to cringe at the top cinematic disasters that disappointed us the most in the last 12 months. These are the films that made us want to burn down the movie theatre and never look back. We highly recommend avoiding these at all costs, unless you’re a psychopath with a fiery love for burning money.
10- Jurassic World Dominion ★★½☆☆
Four years after Isla Nublar was destroyed, dinosaurs now live—and hunt—alongside humans all over the world. This fragile balance will reshape the future and determine, once and for all, whether human beings are to remain the apex predators on a planet they now share with history’s most fearsome creatures.
Review: The movie is a lifeless corporate excuse for a poorly written nostalgia comeback of the original cast. Filled to the brim with worthless exposition and failed stabs at building ANY emotion. The dialogue is atrocious, the characters are shallow and the plot is boring.
9- Uncharted ★★½☆☆
A young street-smart, Nathan Drake and his wisecracking partner Victor “Sully” Sullivan embark on a dangerous pursuit of “the greatest treasure never found” while also tracking clues that may lead to Nathan’s long-lost brother.
Review: The film adaptation of Uncharted seems like it should be a no-brainer – full of action, adventure, and treasure-hunting. However, the execution of this movie leaves much to be desired. The CGI is unrealistic, the dialogue is uninspired, and the action scenes feel cheap. It’s a shame that this attempt at a movie is now attached to such a loved franchise.
08- The Menu ★★☆☆☆
A couple travels to a coastal island to eat at an exclusive restaurant where the chef has prepared a lavish menu, with some shocking surprises.
Review: I had high expectations for this film, but it ultimately fell short. While it had a fresh premise, the execution was flawed and the events depicted made no sense. Luckily Anya Taylor Joy and Ralph Fiennes’s performances made this pretentious mess tolerable. Honestly, I was really disappointed by the lack of effort put into the horror aspect of this thing. It was like they were too afraid to go all in and just ended up with a tame and unimpressive result. After almost two hours, it just fell flat and left me feeling underwhelmed.
07- Amsterdam ★★☆☆☆
In the 1930s, three friends—a doctor, a nurse, and an attorney—witness a murder, become suspects themselves and uncover one of the most outrageous plots in North American history.
Review: This film is a mess from start to finish. The plot is confusing and the director’s attempts to address serious themes like racism and fascism are shallow and misguided. The film can’t even decide what genre it wants to be and fails to deliver. The only redeeming factor is the strong performances from the cast that make this movie barely watchable.
06- Don’t Worry Darling ★★☆☆☆
A 1950s housewife living with her husband in a utopian experimental community begins to worry that his glamorous company may be hiding disturbing secrets.
Review: I don’t know what I was expecting from this film, but it certainly wasn’t a complete disaster. It was like a white-washed live-action of an Isekai anime. Florence Pugh seemed to be the only one trying to salvage this mess, but even her performance couldn’t do shit. The cinematography was probably the only redeeming factor, but it’s not enough to make up for the incoherent plot and completely ridiculous character motivation.
05- Samaritan ★½☆☆☆
Thirteen-year-old Sam Cleary suspects that his mysteriously reclusive neighbor Mr. Smith is actually the legendary vigilante Samaritan, who was reported dead 20 years ago. With crime on the rise and the city on the brink of chaos, Sam makes it his mission to coax his neighbor out of hiding to save the city from ruin.
Review: While this superhero film may try to present itself as deep and introspective with its themes… the execution is a complete disaster. The storyline is twisty for the sake of being twisty, and the acting is barely tolerable. The cinematography may be well-oriented, but the editing is messy and the visual effects are laughably bad. The dialogue feels like it was taken from 8-mile and the antagonists are one-dimensional and annoying. To top it off, the conclusion is lacking and makes little sense. All in all, this film is a complete mess and a complete waste of Sylvester Stallone‘s talent.
04- Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore ★☆☆☆☆
In an effort to thwart Grindelwald’s plans of raising pure-blood wizards to rule over all non-magical beings, Albus Dumbledore enlists his former student Newt Scamander, who agrees to help, though he’s unaware of the dangers that lie ahead. Lines are drawn as love and loyalty are tested, even among the truest friends and family, in an increasingly divided wizarding world.
Review: This is just another example that we can’t have nice things, this feels like an insult to what the source material established years ago and a slap to the fans of the Harry Potter franchise. One can only hope that Warner Bros. stops milking the franchise and that JK Rowling stops pretending that she cares about her creation as both parties seem keen to green-light projects that have no care nor love for what they’re part of.
03- Spiderhead ★☆☆☆☆
A prisoner in a state-of-the-art penitentiary begins to question the purpose of the emotion-controlling drugs he’s testing for a pharmaceutical genius.
Review: Two hours of pure chaos, filled with poor writing and even more subpar acting. It disappoints me that such a growing and talented actor like Miles Teller would dive head first to be the protagonist in this mess with Chris Hemsworth whose acting has been decaying in recent years by just doing the same character over and over again… at least this time he managed to portray a less annoying version of Thor. This is just a reskin low-budget-looking copycat of Black Mirror.
02- Pinocchio ★☆☆☆☆
A wooden puppet embarks on a thrilling adventure to become a real boy.
Review: It’s just another soul-sucking attempt of Disney to rehash the Disney Vault classics to a fresh and younger generation with nightmare-inducing CGI that would make the frozen head of Walt Disney actually cringe.
01- Thor: Love and Thunder ★☆☆☆☆
After his retirement is interrupted by Gorr the God Butcher, a galactic killer who seeks the extinction of the gods, Thor enlists the help of King Valkyrie, Korg, and ex-girlfriend Jane Foster, who now inexplicably wields Mjolnir as the Mighty Thor. Together, they embark upon a harrowing cosmic adventure to uncover the mystery of the God Butcher’s vengeance and stop him before it’s too late.
Review: Being a big Taika Waititi fan, this movie really broke me. Love and Thunder is not only a clear step down from Thor: Ragnarok but also a painfully mid experience. On paper, this seemed like a good idea but it ended up being a complete mess with some ok moments tossed in. They literally wasted Christian Bale acting skills for no reason.
–
These movies left a lot to be desired. However, as we move into the new year, we can only hope for better and more enjoyable films in the future. Happy New Year to all, and here’s to a brighter and more successful 2023 in the world of cinema!
The numbers are in and, as sadly expected, Lightyear isn’t going to set the box office in flames. The Toy Story spinoff which isn’t necessarily an actual spinoff of the original franchise, but rather a fictional film that takes place in that same universe, has opened to $51M over the weekend. With a wide release in 4,255 North American which is on par with many current releases but it does seem like family audiences aren’t quite ready yet to return to theaters as initially hoped. David A. Gross, who runs Franchisee Entertainment Research, shared the following statement on its release:
This is a soft opening for a spin-off of one of the most successful animation series of all time. ‘Toy Story’ defied gravity at the box office during its 27 year run, each episode topping the last, the last two clearing a billion dollars worldwide. But like all spin-offs, the ‘Lightyear’ story is narrower now.
David A. Gross
The early expectations had the film at around $70M but it’s sadly now going to be one of Pixar’s least successful releases, especially with a high production cost of $200M. Lightyear isn’t a sign of Pixar losing its draw at the box office, but more a reflection of the pandemic’s influence on younger audiences and Disney+’s strategy of using one of its biggest franchises to boost subscription numbers. Internationally the film has also been a lukewarm release with $34.6M, which puts it at an international release of $85.6M, which is a far cry from its initial expected $135M+.
Jurassic World Dominion kept its dominance at the box office, as it held on to the top spot, but did face a harsh 60% drop in its second weekend. It’s not too far from Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness‘ 67% and highlights how these franchise films operate. With a lower opening than the Marvel Studios project, it reflects how these drops normally operate, but the dinosaur epic still generated $58.6M which is a strong release and now stands at $259M domestically.
It’s second-weekend highlights even more how much TopGun Maverick is an exception than the rule, as the film has taken a massive $44M in its latest weekend which is just a 15% drop. As such, it is the second-highest fourth weekend with the only exception being Avatar. The film is likely going to pass a billion in just a few weeks as it already stands at $885M and will likely become the highest-grossing film of the year very soon. It sparked the box office in a big way and is a testament to just how sudden some projects can pull in viewers.
Even a negative critical reception wouldn’t stop Jurassic World: Dominion from dominating the box office. The third and supposedly final entry of the World franchise opened to $143M+ opening over the weekend. Its Saturday jumped to $46.7M, a surprising 12% climb from its Friday (incl. Thursday previews) grosses of $41.7M. As such, Colin Trevorrow’s return to the franchise is leaving its footprint at the box office.
So far, it’s the fourth-best opening of the domestic box office going by EntTelligence’s moviegoers counted, which is at 10.8M right after Top Gun Maverick’s 11.6M. So far, it’s the best opening for a non-superhero film since the pandemic started and even passed the previous holder Top Gun: Maverick, which just reached $393.3M, which will likely beat Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness to $400M domestically. Universal’s Domestic Distribution head offered the following insight:
This incredible debut for Jurassic World Dominion is driven by not only the loyal fans of the original Jurassic trilogy beginning in 1993, but many new fans experiencing Jurassic for the first time as our casts united for an epic conclusion. After a long journey from being the first Hollywood film to safely return to production during COVID, up through our global release dates, we’re thrilled for our filmmakers and talent who worked tirelessly on this movie, and for our great partners in exhibition benefitting from a tremendous start to their summer
Dominion is definitely leaving a splash at the box office and is highlighting how far we’ve come since the pandemic tore down any potential expectations. The original trilogy from Jurassic Park, Jeff Goldblum, Laura Dern, and Sam Neil, definitely also left an imprint on audiences and may have added some more weight to the project. That’s not too shabby for the worst-reviewed entry in the franchise. Though, it received a positive A- CinemaScore putting it potentially still keeping a decent hold at the box office’s future weekends.
The latest Jurassic World film pulled in $18 million in Thursday previews. Dominion is expected to rake in a fair amount of money this weekend with a projected $125 million, however, Top Gun: Maverick’s continued box office dominance could dampen Dominion’s haul. Especially as Dominion has mixed reviews heading into its opening weekend stateside. With a 33% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, that’s well below both Jurassic World (71%) and JurassicWorld: Fallen Kingdom (47%).
The Jurassic World films, which are a continuation of the beloved Jurassic Park franchise, have proven to be box office juggernauts in recent years. The first Jurassic World movie opened to a stunning $208 million back in 2015, eventually going on to earn $1.6 billion globally. The sequel, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, opened three years later to $150 million and ended its theatrical run with $1.3 worldwide. It remains to be seen how Dominion will perform, however, with original Jurassic Park stars Sam Neill, Jeff Goldblum and Laura Dern all returning, it’s possible nostalgia could serve as a selling point for the film.
While the film is only now just releasing stateside, it has been released in a few overseas markets already. The film has made $55 million internationally so far across 15 markets. That’s without the film opening in China; that will finally happen this weekend, where it is thought it’ll open to approximately $15 million. If that number holds, it’ll serve as the biggest Hollywood opening in China this year ahead of The Batman’s $12.1 million opening earlier this year.
Top Gun Maverick and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness have reinvigorated the box office, as we are slowly nearing the usual developments from before the pandemic shook up the world. Now, a third film is eyeing a massive opening weekend as early projects have Jurassic World Dominion eyeing a domestic $125M+ opening weekend with a release within 4,600+ theaters. On top of that, it will add $120M+ worldwide. So far, it has already earned $55.7M in specific territories.
Colin Trevorrow is taking over the third entry of the Jurassic World franchise after J.A. Bayona took over for the Fallen Kingdom. While the opening with $125M+ is strong, it’s only the third-best opening for the franchise as the first entry opened to $208.8M back in 2015 before its first sequel took in $148M three years later. The original Jurassic World dominated the box office back in the day and it was overtaken by Star Wars: Force Awakens half a year later.
The big selling point for the new entry is naturally the return of legacy actors Sam Neil, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum. While Goldblum was sold as returning in the last entry, he only had a brief role at the end of the film. This time around, all three will have bigger roles this time around. It was one of the few films that started production during the pandemic and had faced some delays due to positive COVID tests. It took them 100 days to finish production.
Generally, it seems that Jurassic World: Dominion is facing similar developments as Top Gun Maverick, but it’ll be interesting to see if it can even compete with the legs that the jet-fueled blockbuster. Speaking of, that film might face its biggest decline with a predicted 50% to fall to $45M. Yet, its word-of-mouth has been powerful and with Dominion getting some mixed reviews, it may have a stronger hold once again. Luckily, the older target audience for the Tom Cruise film might not bite too much into each other’s box office but is also one of the core reasons for its longevity, as an inactive movie-going audience is making up for its absence for the last few years.
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