More than 30 years and six movies later, the “Jurassic” universe is expanding again with “Jurassic World Rebirth.”
Starring Scarlett Johansson, Jonathan Bailey and Mahershala Ali, the movie — directed by Gareth Edwards — picks up five years after the last installment, “Jurassic World Dominion,” which was toplined by Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard. The previous movie also featured the series’ original stars, Laura Dern, Jeff Goldblum and Sam Neill.
In a short clip released by Universal Pictures on Tuesday, Johansson and Bailey stare at an unseen creature — only a dinosaur’s tail was teased in the brief video that was marked with the tagline, “Something is coming.” The full trailer, which dropped Wednesday morning, offered a better look at the daunting creatures.
Johansson and the new crew are on a mission to collect DNA samples from three dinos across land, sea and sky. The environment has now become essentially inhospitable to most dinosaurs, but the three creatures they’re searching for have managed to survive — and their DNA contains the key to a drug that would be lifesaving for humans too.
Mahershala Ali plays Duncan Kincaid in “Jurassic World Rebirth,” directed by Gareth Edwards.
(Jasin Boland / Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment)
Johansson’s character, Zora Bennett, is a covert operations expert tasked with guiding the group through its mission, and she works closely with Ali’s character, team leader Duncan Kincaid. Bailey plays paleontologist Henry Loomis.
The cast is rounded out by Rupert Friend, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Luna Blaise, David Iacono and Audrina Miranda.
The upcoming installment promises to usher the series into “an ingenious new direction,” per the film’s logline, but it will also stay true to the series’ core, with original “Jurassic Park” screenwriter David Koepp penning the script. Steven Spielberg is also serving as an executive producer alongside several “Jurassic” alums.
The three previous “Jurassic World” films were box office hits, each hauling over $1 billion worldwide. “Rebirth” hits theaters July 2.