The hat is back
Jurassic Park remains one of the great pure blockbusters.
Steven Spielberg has made arguably better movies, but maybe none as thrilling and exciting. The special effects may no longer be cutting edge, but they are so artfully crafted you never lose your sense of wonder. And Jeff Goldblum has never been cooler (or more iconically shirtless).
But at the heart of it all is Sam Neill, as Dr Alan Grant. A hero you can depend on.
The franchise was restarted with 2015’s okay-ish Jurassic World, and its follow-up, the very-stupid-but-fun Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. Enjoyable as they were though, they both have a definite lack of Dr Alan Grant.
That is about to change with the second sequel, Jurassic World: Dominion.
Sam Neill confirmed on Twitter that both he and Laura Dern are back as Dr Alan Grant and Dr Ellie Sattler.
Hold onto your hats- gettin' my old one back on this week , and facing off dinosaurs once again. Best yet .Excited and terrified- these things will kill ya. With @LauraDern @BryceDHoward @prattprattpratt #JeffGoldblum @colintrevorrow I'm obviously a little more …grizzled now.. pic.twitter.com/zYtG5uadB2
— Sam Neill (@TwoPaddocks) August 2, 2020
He also tweeted a photo of Alan Grant’s trademark hat, to prove it was actually happening.
Hello old friend. #JurassicWorld #JurassicPark @LauraDern #JeffGoldblum @BryceDHoward @prattprattpratt @amblin @colintrevorrow pic.twitter.com/UQbctvqjdx
— Sam Neill (@TwoPaddocks) August 4, 2020
Sam Neill did return in 2001’s Jurassic Park III, where Dr Grant was recruited to help rescue a child who has become stranded on one of the dinosaur-infested islands. This will be the first time he has played the character in a film for nearly two decades, but he did lend his voice to the Jurassic World Evolution video game in 2018.
Jurassic World: Dominion also sees Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard star, along with Jeff Goldblum and BD Wong, who had previously reprised their characters from the original film in the Jurassic World trilogy. Colin Trevorrow is returning to direct.
Production started in February 2020, but like every other film being made, was halted in March due to COVID. Filming restarted last month in the UK, and it is set to hit cinemas in June 2021.
