'Jurassic World' Cheat Sheet: Everything You Need To Know, So Far

Due for release a whopping fourteen years after its predecessor, the unveiling of the hugely anticipated Jurassic World is finally within our grasp. Overcoming what has been described as a decade of “production hell”, the fourth film in the gargantuan Hollywood blockbuster franchise had until recently managed to keep many of its details under wraps. Yet, as is increasingly common in Hollywood, such attempts were ultimately futile as finer details of the plot were leaked onto various websites.

Such an act has fervently infuriated director Colin Trevorrow, who follows the lineage of both Joe Johnston and the legendary Steven Spielberg in helming the extensive filming and production schedule. The up-and-coming San Franciscan director, whose previous movie credits include only the TV-movie Gary: In Crisis and the low budget time travel adventure Safety Not Guaranteed, has had a sharp introduction to the prying eyes of the Hollywood press. His obvious dismay that elements of the film are known to the public a year before its scheduled release is perfectly understandable. 

Such an act however, has allowed hungry fans an additional opportunity to discover tit-bits about the nature of the plot and some descriptions of the dinosaurs themselves. In a begrudged e-mail to Slasherfilm that was positively rammed with the very spoilers the director had initially hoped to avoid revealing at all costs, Trevorrow publically announced some truly juicy details on Jurassic World. Opening the email with a message of disappointment from the cast and crew that someone had actively directed plot points towards the attention of the press, Trevorrow revealed that Jurassic World will take place in a fully functioning park in the fictional island of Isla Nubar, positioned several hundred kilometres off the coast of Costa Rica. It is a brand new type of nature reserve, where people are allowed to maintain a proximity with the dinosaurs unlike anything seen before- “imagine a teenager texting his girlfriend with his back to a T-Rex behind protective glass”, Trevorrow digressed. The park will consist of elements of a biological preserve, safari, zoo and a theme park with “fully functioning dinosaurs”.

Chris Pratt will play a researcher who investigates the dinosaur's relationship with humans. 

Trevorrow had previously revealed on Twitter that featherless dinosaurs would be included but in the email he is incredibly forthcoming on the make-up of the film’s pre-historic creatures. He has stated that the gap in the dinosaur’s DNA has been filled by a similar genome, as in the original Jurassic Park films. The subsequently modified dinosaur won’t be a mutant, just a more evolved animal with higher and intelligence and an even larger appetite. Such a leap in genetic modification is said to be at the behest of a corporate mandate, who want animals that are “bigger, louder and with more teeth.”

More: Bryce Dallas Howard Has Also Been Announced As Part Of The Cast. 

It has also been revealed that Chris Pratt, the movie’s protagonist, will play a researcher sent to investigate the limits of the relationship between humans and animals. The announcement has put to bed rumours circulating online that the movie would pit trained dinosaurs against wild ones in a standard “good” vs “evil” dinosaur plot, with Chris Pratt’s character in charge of training the “good” dinosaurs. Such a plot has been rubbished by the director and the movie is set to focus more on the relationship between humans and animals “how we react to the threat they pose to our dominance on Earth as a species”, leaving the film alive with the potential for metaphor and allegory. Trevorrow added: “There’s no such thing as “good” or “bad” dinosaurs. There are only predators and prey.”

Spielberg will take on the role of producer for the film.

Asked what the differences between the upcoming Jurassic World and the previous films would amount to, Trevorrow reverted to his previous elusiveness: “I have to build something that can take them to the same place those earlier films took us. It may not happen in the same way everyone expects it to, but it’s the way I believe it needs to happen.”

Jurassic World then, looks set to be a different beast- a film guaranteed to be brimming with spectacular action thanks to the new and improved dinosaurs, but also a film with a social conscience more prevalent and profound than the franchise has managed so far.