The Jurassic World series is looking to roar back on the big screens with its newest addition, Jurassic World Rebirth, which hits theaters on July 2, 2025. The recently dropped trailer hints at a darker, scarier chapter, unveiling mutated monsters such as the Distortus Rex and the flying Mutadons, marking a move towards horror-bred storytelling.
A Mission into the Unknown
Five years following the events in Jurassic World Dominion, the movie sees clandestine operative Zora Bennett (Scarlett Johansson) and her team go to a secluded island that was once home to InGen’s initial dinosaur research facility. Their objective: to fetch genetic material from the biggest dinosaurs on Earth, said to contain the secrets to a groundbreaking drug. Nonetheless, the island is presently infested with deadly mutant dinosaurs, leftovers from failed experiments allowed to change uncontrollably. The team, comprising paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis (Jonathan Bailey) and commander Duncan Kincaid (Mahershala Ali), has to navigate this deadly landscape in addition to evacuating a stuck civilian family, the Delgados. The Distortus Rex and Mutadons are introduced.
The standout in the trailer is the reveal of the Distortus Rex, a monster hybrid that was said to be a combination of a T-Rex, a Rancor, and a Xenomorph. The six-armed monster is both terrifying and tragic, the deformities it suffers as it claws at the ground with agony as it inspires both pity and terror. Visual effects supervisor David Vickery says that the design was meant to make people “sorry for it as well as terrified.”
Just as threatening are the Mutadons, pterosaur-Velociraptor feathered hybrids. The flying predators bring a new level of threat to the movie’s menaces, flying and striking from above and demonstrating the horrors of unfettered gene manipulation.
A Return to Horror Roots
Directed by Gareth Edwards (Rogue One, Godzilla) and written by David Koepp, author of the original Jurassic Park, Rebirth is a conscious re-embrace of the franchise’s horror roots. The movie returns to a sequence from Michael Crichton’s original novel—a river rafting scene wherein a T-Rex attacks—a moment previously cut due to financial reasons.
This chapter focuses more on suspense and horror, and the trailer highlights dramatic scenes such as a swimming T-Rex and a Mosasaurus attacking a boat. The tone of the movie promises to be a mix of action and horror, looking to recreate the amazement and fear that characterized the first Jurassic Park.
A New Cast and Setting
Jurassic World Rebirth features a new cast of characters headed by Scarlett Johansson, Mahershala Ali, and Jonathan Bailey. Their trek to the island not only advances the plot but also opens up possibilities for character development and thematics such as the morality of genetic engineering and the danger of playing god.
The setting of the film—a tropical, isolated island—is a rich but dangerous one, peopled by both recognizable dinosaurs and the new, frightening hybrids. This setting heightens the suspense of the film, as people must be able to deal with both the environmental hazards of the terrain and the unpredictable nature of its occupants.
Anticipation Builds
With its mixture of new and traditional elements, Jurassic World Rebirth is primed to breathe new life into the franchise. The inclusion of mutant dinosaurs such as the Distortus Rex and Mutadons, along with a back-to-horror storytelling approach, provides a new spin that respects the series’ heritage while expanding on it.
With the July 2 release date on the horizon, the fans can’t wait for a full experience of this exciting new installment in the Jurassic World series.
