“The dinosaurs may be done with us. But we’re not done with them.”

Truer words were never spoken in the Jurassic world. Even though the franchise appeared to conclude in 2022’s Jurassic World: Dominion, Universal returns us to the land of the lost once again with a brand-new cast, darker tone and sharper script. But are people ready to go back to the island already?

Set five years after the events of Jurassic World: Dominion, Jurassic World: Rebirth reveals that the Earth’s environment has proven to be hostile to its dinosaur herds. Although the beasts have survived along the equator, the rest of the world’s climates have caused the others to die off. But that hasn’t prevented mankind from still trying to exploit the remaining creatures for profit. So, when a major corporation flashes a giant cheque to mercenary Zora Bennett (Scarlett Johansson) and her team, she reluctantly accepts a mission to recover the DNA from some of the most colossal creatures across land, sea and air. However, when things go wrong, she and her team must fight to survive the most dangerous jungles on the planet.

L to R: Jonathan Bailey as paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis and Scarlett Johansson as skilled covert operations expert Zora Bennett in JURASSIC WORLD REBIRTH, directed by Gareth Edwards.

Admittedly, it can be risky rebooting (refreshing?) a franchise so soon after its latest incarnation. With the previous entries so fresh in the mind, it can be difficult to pivot to a new story with new characters and new ‘stakes’.

But one can’t deny that there’s an awful lot that this Rebirth does well.

Directed by Gareth Edwards, Jurassic World: Rebirth is a shockingly effective return to form for the franchise. With an emphasis on returning the series to its grittier roots, the film manages to capture some of the glory of the original trilogy while still maintaining the wilder continuity of the last few films. (Quite frankly, given the ‘dino-expansion’ around the Globe over the previous films, the fact that they were able to come up with a reasonable explanation to fix the problem is almost miraculous.)

With Rebirth, Edwards brings back the necessary seriousness that has been missing from the franchise for some time. While that may sound odd, the past several films have essentially served as playful callbacks to earlier entries, limiting their effectiveness. While that same nostalgia certainly comes into play here in moments, these ‘pops’ to the audience are held to a minimum as Edwards attempts to focus on creating something (relatively) new. (In fact, it’s almost amusing that the film’s best cameos are fan-favourite dinosaurs as opposed to human actors.)

There’s a certain level of intensity that has been missing from the Jurassic world. However, similar to Edwards’ first film (Monsters), this World views its beasties as legitimate threats. In fact, these are some of the most well-executed ‘dino moments’ in the entire franchise. Whether they’re clinging to the cliffs or out-rafting a T-Rex, Rebirth gives these dinosaurs their teeth back. Edwards has always had strong visual sensibilities for things that go bump in the night and he’s given the opportunity to use those talents here. Throughout much of the film, there’s a genuine sense that characters we care about could be eaten or executed at any given moment. (Without giving spoilers, a certain moment on the mountainside brought genuine gasps of surprise from our audience.)

Further, Rebirth also includes some of the better performances in the franchise. While the film arguably has too many characters, it also manages to make us care about them more than we have in recent films. While performances by Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard felt like silly (and outdated) parodies, Rebirth treats its characters with a little more sobriety. Johannson and Mahershala Ali are given backstories that resonate. Rupert Friend fills in nicely as the necessary ‘corporate stooge’. And Jonathan Bailey—who may truly be America’s Sweetheart at the moment—steals the movie as altruistic scientist, Dr. Henry Loomis.

L to R: Bechir Sylvain as Leclerc, Jonathan Bailey as Dr. Henry Loomis and Scarlett Johansson as Zora Bennett in JURASSIC WORLD REBIRTH, directed by Gareth Edwards.

What’s more, while the film doesn’t have the psychological impact of the original—we often forget that it arrived at a time when culture was actively discussing the ethical impact of cloning technology—it does try to remain current with its social conversation. In Rebirth, there is a surprising conversation surrounding the nature of ‘big pharma’ and what it means to offer help to humanity. While the dialogue isn’t always ‘sharp’, this is an entirely relevant discussion in today’s culture and adds to the relevance of the film itself. In fact, all of these ingredients make for a solid entry into a franchise that should have long out-worn its welcome.

Admittedly, the film does have several flaws, most of which are fairly typical for a ‘dinosaur movie’. Logic jumps, messy dialogue in spots and, again, too many characters can be a little distracting. But, honestly, the biggest issue with the film may simply be time. After the release of 2015’s Jurassic World, demand for the franchise was high. (After all, we hadn’t had a sequel to the films since Jurassic Park III in July of 2001.) Since then, however, the franchise has delivered three sequels and, until now, the quality had waned severely.

Despite the nostalgic fun that the World films have tried to capture, increasingly silly (and repetitive) stories and flat characters have minimized their impact. (In fact, the most recent film was even touted as essentially the franchise finale.) Even though Rebirth manages to right the ship for the most part, the return of the franchise so soon after its perceived ‘demise’ feels unnecessary, rightly or wrongly.

Mahershala Ali is Duncan Kincaid in JURASSIC WORLD REBIRTH, directed by Gareth Edwards

It’s this perceived lack of cultural demand that seems to work against this otherwise delightful Jurassic sequel. With Rebirth, Edwards successfully revives a franchise many had deemed extinct. Whether or not people will be excited about its return is yet to be determined.

Jurassic Park: Rebirth is available in theatres on Wednesday, July 2nd, 2025.