But first, a fairy tale…
There was a script. It was for “Jurassic Park IV.” It was written by John Sayles and “The Departed” Oscar winner William Monahan. It featured crossbred attack dinosaurs with body armor running recon missions for the government. It was never produced. Since word circulated that this script exists, Universal has released “Evan Almighty,” “Land Of The Lost,” “Skyline” and “Little Fockers.” Clearly we are a worse movie culture without this version of “Jurassic Park IV.”
It appears as if that idea has died, but “Jurassic Park IV” lives on, as Steven Spielberg and screenwriter Mark Protosevich (“I Am Legend“) have been meeting to discuss prospective dino sequels. The duo had been linked previously to a remake of “Oldboy” with Will Smith attached (that thankfully never got off the ground) though it should have seemed clear that project would not feature crossbred attack dinosaurs in body armor. Franchise-hungry Universal is likely hot on this idea, and why shouldn’t they be? “Jurassic Park III,” a mostly-forgettable rehash of the first two films, made $386 million worldwide a decade ago, and with sufficient distance between now and then, a 3D-ified dino rampage sequel would no doubt be a bonafide hit.
Universal has released notice that there is currently no screenwriter aboard “Jurassic Park IV,” but that didn’t stop the last installment, which was penned by Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor and was not only terrible, but genuinely didn’t have an ending. And of course no one has mentioned what the story would concern, as there were only two “Jurassic Park” novels from which to draw inspiration, with original author Michael Crichton passing away a few years ago. While the law of diminishing returns is in effect, there is absolutely no reason why there shouldn’t be another Spielberg-produced “Jurassic Park” hitting theaters in the next few years.
