The Funny Line Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom Had To Cut For Time

Daniella Pineda in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom

There are a few things that you know for sure you're going to get when Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom roars into theaters this weekend: lots of dinosaurs, people getting eaten by those dinosaurs and funny one-liners. Humor has been a part of the Jurassic series from the start, providing moments of levity to break up the action and the terror. But inevitably, there is always some gold left on the cutting room floor, and such seems to be the case with Daniella Pineda's favorite funny line from the film. The actress, who is one of the new characters in the film, plays Dinosaur Protection Group paleo-veterinarian Zia Rodriguez. She described her favorite scene that had to be cut for time, saying:

Yeah, there was a scene I really, really loved, and I understood why they cut it, for sake of time. But it's me and Chris Pratt, and we're in a military vehicle with all these mercenaries. And it's kind of quiet, everyone's just kind of waiting. And I look at Chris and I'm like, 'Yeah, square jaw, good bone structure, tall, muscles. I don't date men, but if I did, it would be you. It would gross me out, but I'd do it.'

You can see why Daniella Pineda liked this scene. It was a chance for her to deliver laughs with her own funny line opposite Chris Pratt, who is currently the main jokester of the franchise. The joke is also funny as something of a meta-commentary on Chris Pratt's looks that I imagine many audience members can sympathize with. Even though she doesn't date men, Zia Rodriguez is still not immune to the rugged appeal of Owen Grady, finding the notion of dating him both revolting and yet acceptable. The line is also significant in that it makes it very clear that Zia Rodriguez is an LGBT character. So cutting a line that reveals that important aspect of the character detracts from what we know about her. Of course, it is quite possible that that information is conveyed elsewhere in the film. But if her sexuality is merely subtext in the rest of Fallen Kingdom, that makes it much more than a joke that was cut.

Based on what we know about Fallen Kingdom, it looks like there is a lot of story to pack in, so it's only natural that certain sacrifices have to be made for runtime. Sadly, this happened to be one of Daniella Pineda's favorite scenes, as she told Build Series. Even though this line was cut, I think it's a safe bet that there is still plenty of humor in this movie to offset hybrid dinosaurs trying to murder everyone. Hopefully Daniella Pineda's Zia Rodriguez still has some other funny lines in the movie, and we get to know about her as a new character. It would be good to have someone else besides Owen Grady eliciting laughs and acting as a bit of a foil for the wise-cracking raptor trainer. The cut joke certainly paints Zia Rodriguez as something of a cheeky character who isn't afraid to speak her mind and is always entertaining when she does.

You can see Daniella Pineda, Chris Pratt and all the stars of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom when the film finally opens in theaters stateside on June 22. Reviews are in and the sequel film is already off to a strong start overseas, and it's likely to clean up pretty well domestically. For all of the biggest movies coming to theaters this year check out our release schedule.

Nick Evans

Nick grew up in Maryland has degrees in Film Studies and Communications. His life goal is to walk the earth, meet people and get into adventures. He’s also still looking for The Adventures of Pete and Pete season 3 on DVD if anyone has a lead.