‘Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom’ Features A Tearful Callback To ‘Jurassic Park’ That Has Fans Emotional

WARNING: Spoilers for Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom ahead

The latest in the Jurassic Park series says goodbye to the island that started it all in explosive fashion. The volcanic eruption that highlighted the trailers for Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom didn’t leave much to the imagination when it comes to the fate of the island and many of the dinosaurs that inhabit it. Sure, they had a more extended run than the dinosaurs in Michael Crichton’s original novel — destroyed by a non-existent air force — but it is still the end of an era for the dinosaurs of Isla Nublar and Isla Sorna. The latter apparently died off before this newest movie, but that could all be retconned before it’s all said and done.

The end of the original Jurassic Park wasn’t just pure destruction by a volcano, though. Director J.A. Bayona spoke with Heat Vision over at The Hollywood Reporter and revealed the emotional moment that he saw as a final chapter to what Steven Spielberg started back in 1993. A moment that is apparently leaving some folks in tears.

So if you’ve seen the film, you’ll know the moment where the Brachiosaurus is trapped on the dock before facing its final fate. That moment was intentional by Bayona and is having the intended effect with fans who have seen the film:

The last thing they glimpse is a distressed Brachiosaurus on the dock, obscured by smoke and helpless to do anything as it awaits its death. It’s particularly poignant piece of symmetry, as a Brachiosaurus was the first dinosaur unveiled to audiences in 1993’s Jurassic Park.

https://twitter.com/DRMovieNews/status/1010741051785732096

It might be hard to believe that audiences are having an emotional reaction to a CGI dinosaur, but it is one that carries a lot of weight according to Bayona:

“That scene represents the ending of a dream that started 25 years ago…You are telling the ending of that island and the ending of that dream.”

Bayona ramped up the nostalgia on set to get his actors into the right emotional space, which is important when you are acting opposite a dot on a green screen.

“I played a very sweet and a little sad version of the Jurassic Park melody. So that was very effective for the actors, especially for Bryce,” says Bayona. “Being there, telling that story, listening to music from John Williams, they were all very emotional.”

You think about what that dinosaur represented in the first film and it knocks it home. Not only is it the first dinosaur Alan Grant and crew encounter after arriving on the island, but it is also the friendliest dinosaur they meet on the whole adventure. It represents the aspect of Jurassic Park that isn’t terror and death. And it just gets burned up.

No wonder folks are upset:

https://twitter.com/lindseyromain/status/1010046062759989249

https://twitter.com/JURASSlCWORLD/status/1010147451053867008

https://twitter.com/yesitshanna/status/1010675046753292289

https://twitter.com/HiddenCorsair/status/1010003529610809345

https://twitter.com/spookynanner/status/1010030550399135749

https://twitter.com/MorganWilkey/status/1010006917886902273

Let’s just remember the good times, OK?

(Via The Hollywood Reporter)