The Jurassic Park franchise is a beloved part of film history, especially Steven Spielberg's 1993 original movie. That blockbuster broke new ground for visual and practical effects, which brought the dinosaurs to life. It also introduced iconic characters, including Laura Dern's Ellie Sattler. Dern will reprise her role in Colin Trevorrow's untitled Jurassic World 3, and the Golden Globe and Emmy winning actress is especially eager to move her character's story forward.
Ellie Sattler was a genius and bonafide badass throughout the course of Jurassic Park, and she eventually popped up safe at home in the third movie. She'll finally appear in the third Jurassic World film, alongside Jeff Goldblum's Ian Malcolm and Sam Neill's Dr. Alan Grant. Laura Dern recently spoke about the upcoming blockbuster and her character, saying:
I’ve had so many girls and women come up to me over the years talking about her being an icon for them, and that’s meant so much to me. So, the idea of reconsidering it is really to look at like, Oh, now she gets to be even more of a grownup and really own who she is, and what she was willing to risk to protect and educate as a scientist and humanist, and like, what would that look like now? It’s exciting to continue that journey and see what they come up with, and I’m excited to learn. Steven seems excited. Sam [Neill] and Jeff [Goldblum] seem excited, and I love that, so it’s really fun to think about.
It looks like Laura Dern is ready to bring Ellie Sattler to the modern world. And considering how high the stakes are in the wake of Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom's twist ending, the world is going to need Ellie more than ever.
Fallen Kingdom ended the way no one expected: by the dinosaurs of Isla Nublar being released into the world. After the island itself was destroyed in a volcanic eruption, a handful of Dinos were rescued and brought to The Lockwood Estate. But young Maisie ultimately freed the genetically engineered creatures. Now Jurassic World has become a reality, and things will likely be chaos when we pick up the story in Colin Trevorrow's upcoming threequel. We got a glimpse at this new dangerous world with the short movie Battle at Big Rock, but that's only the beginning.
Related: Why Laura Dern Didn't Work For A Year, Despite Jurassic Park's Success
Laura Dern is excited to show the older version of Ellie in Jurassic World 3, and see how she's continued to become more capable and confident. In the same conversation with Deadline, she describes what it was like to work on the original Steven Spielerg classic, saying:
Well, I think the thing I love the most about playing Ellie Sattler, and this was the early ’90s, was that it was the first CGI movie ever. It was going to become a franchise, but we didn’t call that. We were less familiar with that as an idea. We were going to do, it felt like, this wild thing that Steven [Spielberg] wanted to attempt, which had never been done before. And he wanted to make sure that if all worked well, that the female in the center of the story was as much of a badass and as fearless as anyone else. He took it seriously, and she was kind of a feminist.
Jurassic Park broke new ground in a few ways, and has remained a classic part of film history. The Jurassic World franchise has been able to make a ton of money at the box office, and show even more thrilling and unbelievable visuals. I mean, just take Fallen Kingdom's volcano sequence.
It should be interesting to see how Colin Trevorrow utilizes the original cast in Jurassic World 3, and how much action they'll get. Jeff Goldblum was kept thoroughly away from the main plot of Fallen Kingdom, but now that the Dinosaurs are among us, the heroes from the original movie will have some much needed insight.
Jurassic World 3 is currently set to arrive in theaters on June 11, 2021. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies. And our 2020 release list to look ahead toward the New Year.
