Steven Spielberg prohibited 'Jurassic World: Dominion' from having any direct references to his movies

Jurassic Park is a masterpiece. We can all agree on that, right? Well, even Steven Spielberg himself wants it to remain that way, without any more nods in the modern films of the saga. Gareth Edwards, director of the new installment of the franchise, Jurassic World: The Rebirth, has revealed that, at Steven Spielberg’s recommendation, all references and nods to the previous works of the legendary filmmaker were removed from the film. This decision, although difficult for Edwards, was met with understanding due to his admiration for Spielberg and his career. In a recent conversation with Vanity Fair, the director […]

Jurassic Park is a masterpiece. We can all agree on that, right? Well, even Steven Spielberg himself wants it to remain that way, without any more nods in the modern films of the saga. Gareth Edwards, director of the new installment of the franchise, Jurassic World: The Rebirth, has revealed that, at Steven Spielberg’s recommendation, all references and nods to the previous works of the legendary filmmaker were removed from the film. This decision, although difficult for Edwards, was met with understanding due to his admiration for Spielberg and his career. In a recent conversation with Vanity Fair, the director expressed his appreciation for the veteran filmmaker’s experience and commented that, in his opinion, Spielberg was right to suggest this approach.

References? That’s a thing of the Jurassic

Edwards, known for his work on Rogue One and The Creator, expressed his mixed feelings about having to get rid of some nods that he found hilarious. However, despite the changes, he omitted that he had left certain less obvious references that pay homage to Spielberg’s legacy. According to the director, one of these ‘easter eggs’ is hidden at the beginning of the film, a detail that could have delighted Spielberg himself, who is known for including tributes in his work.

This approach aligns with the tradition that Spielberg started in Jurassic Park in 1993, where he made a nod to his iconic film Jaws. In that film, the character Dennis Nedry, played by Wayne Knight, is enjoying the classic shark movie on a screen, something particularly noteworthy, given that the movie is now 50 years old. Edwards, aware of Spielberg’s legacy, has chosen to follow that line of subtle homage, removing the obvious nods but preserving the essence of the tribute throughout his new work.

The lost history of 'Jurassic Park': between series, video games, novels, and comics

When Steven Spielberg was watching how the filming of Jurassic Park was almost ruined by a hurricane, he surely wasn’t thinking that 30 years later the movie would lead to a franchise of six sequels and that in 2025, in fact, Jurassic World: The Rebirth would be released, the second reboot of the saga that promises to rake in millions and millions of dollars in a summer filled with releases in theaters. But Jurassic Park is much more than cinema: along with the sequels, there is a whole transmedia franchise in which […]

When Steven Spielberg was watching how the filming of Jurassic Park was almost ruined by a hurricane, he surely wasn’t thinking that 30 years later the movie would lead to a franchise of six sequels and that in 2025, in fact, Jurassic World: The Rebirth would be released, the second reboot of the saga that promises to rake in millions and millions of dollars in a summer filled with releases in theaters. But Jurassic Park is much more than cinema: alongside the sequels, there is a whole transmedia franchise in which many things are canon, others we have forgotten, and others are absolute craziness just for fans. Shall we take a look at a saga that started many millions of years ago?

Comics

You can’t imagine the number of comics that have continued the story of Jurassic Park since its release in 1993. In fact, the same month the movie hit theaters, it was accompanied by a four-issue adaptation of the film that also included a small prequel. From there, the wild dinosaur West: sequels, prequels, and spin-offs of all kinds accumulated over 28 issues where, among other things, we could see the return of Alan Grant and the characters from the first part in Return to Jurassic Park… which was invalidated by The Lost World, which had its own adaptation in 1997 before completely leaving the comic branch.

Until 2010! IDW continues to publish series and series of Jurassic Park and Jurassic World comics featuring heavyweights like John Byrne or Frank Miller (who did a cover). If after all these new adventures you still want more, Universal released a “motion comic” of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom showcasing the attacks of the dinosaurs in the world after the movie. If you are left wanting teeth and claws, it’s because you want to.

Video Games

In 1994, Ocean Software released, after the corresponding adaptations, Jurassic Park 2: The Chaos Continues for SNES, in which Grant has to return to Isla Nublar after InGen’s competitor, BioSyn, decided to take over the place. In the end, it was all an excuse for a side-scrolling shooter where you had to attack humans and a couple of dinosaurs (the T-Rex and the velociraptors), and it also had its shabby version for Game Boy.

Then came the moment for 3DO to launch another sequel, Jurassic Park Interactive, where players had to save different people by overcoming the mini-games left behind by Dennis Nedry, the villain from the first part. In the videos -the supposed strong point of the game- stunt doubles of the actors were used. That’s the level. In 1998, the PC saw the arrival of Trespasser, a supposed sequel to The Lost World in which we control Anne, the survivor of an accident who must survive as best as she can on Isla Nublar… And it was rated as the worst game of its year. A total success.

There has been much more! Fighting games, spin-offs of Jurassic Park III, park builders like SimCity, mini-games… And, of course, the Telltale graphic adventure that took place after the first part where the goal is to recover a basket full of dinosaur embryos that Dennis Nedry stole in the movie. In the end, you could choose between two ways to finish: either destroying the embryos or letting the T-Rex eat the protagonist. One is a “good” ending, the other let’s say not so much. Oh, yes! And if what you want is a simpler game, Jurassic World Alive is a kind of Jurassic Pokémon Go. Few offer you so much with a single saga.

Novels

You might think, “Well, of course, the two by Michael Crichton, right?” And yes. But also, Scott Ciencin wrote three adventures that are a spin-off of Jurassic Park III, in 2018 Tess Sharpe perpetrated The Evolution of Claire, a prequel based on Claire Dearing during the summer she was an intern at the park, and in 2022 the same author created Maisie Lockdown Adventures, two children’s novels that came out after Jurassic World: Dominion because, well, why not: if a few cents can be made, then they will be well made.

TV Series

Although for years there was talk of a children’s spin-off of Jurassic Park that would air on Saturdays on television, the truth is that fans had to wait until 2020 to see on Netflix Cretaceous Camp, which lasted 50 episodes and is surprisingly considered canon, as it takes place before, during, and after Jurassic World. When it ended, a direct sequel, Dino Chaos Theory, began, which will premiere its fourth season in November and in which the group reunites to fight against a global conspiracy. Seeing that we have continued to have a franchise to enjoy, do not worry: things will probably end well.

Ah! But there is so much more to expand your Jurassic knowledge! A play, up to seven attractions in theme parks, two short films, countless merchandise… Who said that “dino-mania” is a thing of the past?