In the lead up to the 2022 movie release of Jurassic World Dominion, there was talk of a sequence that would mix the world of dinosaurs with that of espionage. It’s not exactly a crossroads you’d think would exist, but with part of the trilogy capper’s action involving an underground market and one hell of a motorcycle chase, those worlds actually coexist rather well. As it turns out, even behind the camera, the worlds of James Bond and Jurassic World overlapped thanks to a huge similarity in how both series approach stunt work.
During the massive Jurassic World Dominion experience that celebrated the film’s home entertainment release in Malta, I got to peek behind the scenes with David Grant, a Lead Stunt Performer on Dominion. Doubling for both Sam Neill’s Dr. Alan Grant and Scott Haze’s Rainn Delacourt, David also has another distinct entry on his resume as a stunt performer: he was Daniel Craig’s stunt double for the bridge jump shown in pretty much every trailer for No Time To Die.
Uniquely qualified to speak about both films and their stunt prowess, David Grant compared the stunts for both franchises and drew some amazing parallels. Here’s what Grant told CinemaBlend about how Jurassic World Dominion’s stunts stacked up to 007’s:
That’s quite an interesting question. Actually, [between] both of them, there’s quite a lot of similarities really. Because there’s practical and real stunts, in real locations, and dealing with the issues that arise from working in real locations; especially with the vehicle work.
Neither No Time To Die nor Jurassic World Dominion shied away from the world of the practical. It’s especially noticeable in the latter film thanks to the extensive animatronic dinosaur work that populates quite a bit of the screen throughout. When it comes to the Malta sequences that dive deeper into the underground world of dino smuggling, a combination of 2nd unit stunts actually filmed on location, as well as some hero work being done with cast members back at Pinewood Studios in London, helped sell the magic even further.
The lines were amazingly blurred between what’s real and what’s not in Jurassic World Dominion’s heart pounding moments, especially after scaling back on the Malta shoot forced such a hybrid model to be implemented. But even when the CGI enhancements were broken out, David Grant and the team behind Dominion’s thrilling stunts had some very real material they were working with.
Furthering the connections to No Time To Die, Grant’s praise of the vehicle work led to another key player in the framework for Jurassic World Dominion and its motorcycling thrills. Contrary to what you may have thought, that’s not Chris Pratt riding through Malta on a bike.
Owen Grady's joyride across the sights and allies of Malta was pulled off with some more CGI magic. Although there was an actual stunt performer wearing a mockup of Pratt’s hair while riding with the 2nd unit team on location. David Grant explained further the thrills of filming on location, with actual performers, as follows:
They have some great [people], Alistair Whitton who’s the lead stunt double on the motorbike had done some incredible work. So yeah, there’s quite a lot of similarities. Same sort of scales as well, which is nice. And great to be in such a beautiful place like Malta, or up in Italy. Just shooting in those locations is great.
Surprise surprise, Alistair Whitton is another connection to those vehicular thrills in the James Bond series! Much like David Grant, Whitton also was a stunt performer who served on No Time To Die, as well as in 2012’s Skyfall. If you ever needed proof that the Bond franchise uses some of the best stunt performers in the business, you needn’t look further.
After talking with David Grant about the stunt work that was done in Jurassic World Dominion, there was only one thing left to do: actually participate in a stunt sequence myself. You’ll get to read, and see, the results in a future write up, but I can definitely say that after speaking with Grant, my appreciation for stunt performers grew even greater when getting to discuss the hard work and achievement that went into such scenes of heart pounding adventure.
Should you want to see some of the practical stunt work with Alistair Whitton first hand, as well as learn more about how Malta fit into everything, the home entertainment release of Jurassic World Dominion is able to help out in that respect. Check out the special feature “Mayhem In Malta” to learn about the moving parts that meshed a very practical, real world approach with some CGI embellishments.
Meanwhile, if you’re waiting for Jurassic World Dominion’s streaming debut to introduce you to these thrills, you won’t have to wait much longer. Peacock Premium subscribers will be able to watch either the original theatrical cut or Colin Trevorrow’s preferred extended version starting September 2nd.
