With the recent news that Jurassic World is the first in what will now be a trilogy of films, it's looking like this franchise has no plans of becoming extinct any time soon. Released last year, Jurassic World broke box-office records and went on to become the third highest grossing film ever at the time. Now that we know the upcoming sequel will be the second installment of a trilogy, we can't help but draw comparisons with the original Jurassic Park trilogy.
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Starting off with the revolutionary Jurassic Park in 1993, the franchise would spawn two follow up sequels before ending up in "development hell" for 14 years. Then Jurassic World came along in 2015, and here we are, at what could be a turning point for the franchise. In order to maintain success, it's important that the rebooted trilogy does not end up following in the original's footsteps.
Starting Off Too Strong
Jurassic Park was released back in 1993 to universal acclaim and became the highest grossing film ever at the time. Fast forward 22 years to 2015 and we find ourselves in an almost identical situation: Jurassic World was released also to critical acclaim albeit slightly more lukewarm and went on to become the third highest grossing film ever at the time. Jurassic Park would then spawn a trilogy and now we know Jurassic World will also spawn a trilogy. See the similarities?
However, in 1997, The Lost World: Jurassic Park was released to a much cooler reception, with many unhappy at the film's direction. Furthermore, a grittier Jurassic Park III was released in 2001 which brought the franchise into darker territory. But alas, this third installment was received even more negatively than the second. Not only did both these follow-ups gross much less than the first, they both failed to live up to the iconic original. Jurassic Park was just impossible to replicate.
Now that the franchise has finally been revived with Jurassic World, it's important that both of its sequels do not end up following the same pattern history can't repeat itself. Whether it was the outlandish plots, or the failure to replicate the original's success, neither Jurassic Park sequel produced a follow-up as compelling or fresh as the 1993 film. And so, the similarities with the original franchise must end here, and Jurassic World 2 must explore territory worthy of not only Jurassic World but Jurassic Park. It can't be just a great film, it should live up to its strong predecessor.
If you're a fan of Jurassic World, check these out:
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Everything We Know So Far About Jurassic World 2
The First Film's Story Must Continue
Based on Michael Crichton's adored novel, Jurassic Park was very much a one film plot. By the time the credits rolled, the story had ended and there were no loose ends. So while both The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Jurassic Park III were very enjoyable films, they were simply created to capitalize on the success of the original. And thus, stories had to be created for them, involving the secondary island Isla Sorna which was never referred to in the original film. While it was actually quite clever and gave the follow-up films more of a jungle feel, it was ultimately something many didn't take too kindly too.
For instance, the plot of The Lost World: Jurassic Park centered around hunters coming into the deserted island with the intention of taking the biggest creature back to the city for a mainland theme Park. It sounds a little too much like King Kong. However, as it was based on the sequel novel also written by Michael Crichton, it actually worked. But Jurassic Park III wasn't based on a novel so you could be forgiven for thinking that the save the boy and survive plot sounds very much like a dino-thriller B movie. In both cases, brand new stories were created here, and although they ended up being really good films, they were never quite the original, because the story had been told, and completed.
The Jurassic World trilogy must steer clear from standalone plots such as these in order to avoid making the same mistakes. In order to truly live-up to the 2015 film, it must continue its story there must be a reason for it to exist. And it seems like director Colin Trevorrow already thought of this unlike the original, Jurassic World didn't complete the entire story and seemingly left some loose ends on purpose, for future sequels. In fact, the sequel's director Juan Antonio Bayona actually stated:
Its very interesting. The whole Jurassic World is a trilogy that Colin Trevorrow has envisioned. Were writing the second chapter, and its very interesting where hes leading the story."
So Colin Trevorrow's vision has yet to be completed, and one can assume that's why the loose ends were never wrapped up. Between Dr. Wu's escape and the plans for the Indominous Rex not to mention the confirmed returns of Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard there are a lot of storylines that have yet to conclude. So while Jurassic Park had been planned as a story within a film, it seems like Jurassic World was planned as a trilogy from the very beginning. Thus, it's highly likely that Jurassic World 2 will build upon the story told in the first film, rather than creating a story for itself. And this is what will set it apart from the original trilogy.
Venture Into New Territory
While both Jurassic Park sequels told new stories, they didn't really bring anything new to the table. Sure, they had exciting plots with our favorite characters returning and occasionally brought in new dinosaurs, but they didn't add anything new to the mythology. That's one of the reasons why Jurassic World was so well-received. Adding the genetically-modified Indominous Rex created a whole new dynamic and not only added to the mythology but brought the franchise in a fresh new direction. Not only was man now "playing God" by creating dinosaurs, they were engineering their own.
So while it's likely that the film will be using the seeds planted in Jurassic World, this trilogy allows them the opportunity to continue venturing into that new direction. Remember Hoskins' final plan was to use Indominous' for military purposes. Could the next films be based around a war with dinosaurs? As crazy as that sounds, the new ground covered in Jurassic World allows the sequels to continue on a new previously undiscovered ground and take the franchise in brand new, exciting territory.
With confirmation of Jurassic World being part of a trilogy, it seems like history is very much starting to repeat itself. However, it's important that this time the second and third film do not falter as they did in the original Jurassic Park trilogy. While said trilogy is without a doubt one of the most iconic collection of films in history, the follow-up installments don't quite live up to their almighty original. With the first film in the rebooted trilogy receiving the best reviews since Jurassic Park, it's vital that it remains on the path it's headed exploring the mythology further and continue the ongoing story and not make the same mistakes as the first trilogy by producing less than stellar standalone sequels. Whatever happens, the Jurassic World franchise is very much alive and well.
Are you excited at the thought of two more Jurassic World films? Let us know in the comments!
[Source: ComicBook.com]