The 'Jurassic World' Sequel Has A New Vision

Pack your bags for another trip to Jurassic World, but, this time around, you may need to pack a little extra courage. After dominating the box office in the summer of 2015, producers Frank Marshall, Steven Speilberg, and Colin Trevorrow are bringing the excitement of more dinosaurs in Jurassic World 2 with a whole new director at it's helm. Former Jurassic World director Trevorrow is moving on to direct Star Wars: Episode IX, so the Jurassic World sequel will be directed by J.A. Bayona. And that means that Jurassic World 2 may be coming at us with a lot less stereotypical action moments and a whole lot more psychological based fear. Bayona's filmmaking style doesn't seem to quite match up with what we originally assume from a Universal Studios-based family film.

While the director does have quite a bit of notable experience in the filmmaking industry, this sequel will be his first major summer blockbuster in the sense of the word. And while I have no doubt in my mind that he can nail this job, something else is really standing out to me: the Spanish-born director's experience in the field of horror, thriller, and fantasy films. Between projects like Guillermo del Toro's film The Orphanage, two episodes of Showtime's Penny Dreadful, the drama/thriller film The Impossible, and the upcoming fantasy film A Monster Calls, it soon becomes clear from his IMDB page alone that this director has one specific feel to his projects: they all seem pretty eerie.

That, my friends, could mean that Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard's characters are in for a whole new dinosaur-filled experience. Want a better idea of some of Bayona's past work for yourself? Just watch the trailer for A Monster Calls below.

Loking over Bayona's past work only makes me more excited for the vision and feel he will add to Jurassic World. The possibilities are endless. Between his unique cinematography, and a possible stronger focus on the terror and emotional impact of humans getting killed by dinosaurs, Bayona's version of Steven Speilberg's classic concept could be the darker, more realistic dinosaur film we have all been waiting for. Something tells me that this director is not just going to allow people to get eaten alive without remorse like we're used to seeing in action movies full of explosions and monsters.

However, this doesn't mean that audiences who love the first Jurassic World film have anything to worry about. In fact, if anything, approaching the storyline from an eerier, more emotional perspective may actually make a film series so action-packed and well-known more fun. When speaking to Wired magazine last summer, executive producer of the sequel and Jurassic World director Trevorrow actually hinted about the upcoming film's plot in saying, "[It will not be] just a bunch of dinosaurs chasing people on an island. That’ll get old real fast. I feel like the idea that this isn’t always going to be limited to theme parks, and there are applications for this science that reach far beyond entertainment."

He even went on to throw out possible (yet unconfirmed) plot ideas by listing launching points for the next film with, "What if this went open source? It's almost like InGen is Mac, but what if PC gets their hands on it? What if there are 15 different entities around the world who can make a dinosaur?" Bayona's film style mixed with those ideas sounds like pure genius.

Unfortunately, we still have two whole years to spend gearing up for what is to come. The sequel to Jurassic World will come roaring into theaters on June 22, 2018.

Image: Universal Studios