Genre: Adventure/Science Fiction.
Studio:
Universal Pictures.
Production Company:
Amblin Entertainment.
Project Phase: Script Stage (embryonic).
Who's Expected to Be In It:
Hard to say. Jeff Goldbum's two for two when it comes to being on board successful dino outings, but we'll have to
wait and see when the dollars start flying...
Who's Making It:
Michael Crichton (Screenwriter); Steven Spielberg (Producer).
Premise: Unknown.
Comments: In the aftermath of yet another Jurassic Park-related disaster, something has survived. Yep, you guessed it. An urgent need to spend lots of money and make yet another sequel incorporating very little plot or character development but with lots of cool dinos.
The good news is that JP2 recouped its entire budget immediately upon being released. The bad news is that JP2 recouped its entire budget immediately upon being released. Why bad? Because it could unduly set a precedent by which films are judged to be successes. Why bad? Because if...whoops, sorry...when JP3 begins to really begin development in earnest, it will probably be rushed through in order to get it out and make lots of money. And don't forget those toy tie-ins. Why good? Well, Goldblum continues to find himself in blockbuster smash hits and he's a pretty cool guy. The only thing JP3 might be missing to ensure blockbuster status is Will Smith. But give it time...
Release Date: Summer 2000.
Developments: Late June, 1998... Universal officially announces a third Jurassic picture for summer 2000.
Rumors: None at present.
Scoop Feedback:
[Page draft spliced with frog DNA and submitted by 'widgett'.]
July 14, 1997... Word has it that development is underway and Crichton is somewhere sweating over a hot word processor for the third novel.
Dreamworks SKG may be looking to purchase the right to do the third JP movie. Spielberg apparently has stated that he will not direct if Universal hangs onto the franchise and makes the third installment, as after JP2 he is looking to spend his energy only for his new studio, Dreamworks.
A couple of ideas are already being bandied about for a story. First, it has been heard that JP3 may be a prequel of sorts, but if this is the case, where the story would fall in the timeline of things is unknown.
It has also been suggested that the third installment would deal with a new Ice Age descending upon mankind and the dinos reclaiming the mainland to pick up off the puny human survivors. However, it has also been suggested that this is absolute rubbish. [Scoop reported by 'widgett'.]
September 21, 1997... Crichton's rumored follow-up novel may be titled 'Embryo'. In the story, dino embryos are created on the mainland and then are set free in the civilized world. 'Take out food' suddenly has a whole new meaning. [Scoop handed in by 'Gralex.']
June 29, 1998... Today Universal Pictures announced plans to unveil a third Jurassic Park film, scheduled for release in the summer of 2000. However, the director of the first two Jurassic Park films, Steven Spielberg, will be involved only in a producer role for the new film. Amblin Entertainment, Spielberg's production company, will produce the film. In the Universal press release Spielberg said "We have an opportunity to build on the experience and excitement that audiences have come to expect from us. Michael Crichton knows how to surprise and entertain audiences with themes and stories that are smart and original. We've had great success together and, along with Universal Pictures and my colleagues at Amblin, look forward to continuing our association with this next Jurassic Park film."
It should also be noted that in Universal's press release, Jurassic Park novelist Michael Crichton was mentioned as only developing the new film's storyline and not screenwriting it. "When I first wrote my novel 'Jurassic Park' I knew it was a potentially intriguing concept developed from a base of scientific possibilities," said Crichton in the Universal press release, "but I could never have foreseen how that would grow into a worldwide phenomenon. I'm enormously pleased that after 65,000,000 years, the fascination with dinosaurs seems here to stay, and I'm delighted at this opportunity to collaborate again with Steven."
[Something was scooped by Joe Hanna, 'Mrbbblee', 'ScottNY914', 'Kevdo', 'samanmax', 'MPreston88', 'The Schank' and anonymously.]
July 11, 1998... We've heard rumors from a number of scoopers over the past year that a new 'prequel' book is forthcoming from Crichton. According to the rumor, the book will illustrate the story of how the first Jurassic Park island was created and show us how the dinos were cloned from million-year-old DNA. We here at CA aren't holding our breath for the book; the alleged storyline doesn't have any room for the action and suspense the first two books/movies had. We know the dinos never broke loose from their cages before the events of the first film, so what point would a prequel serve?
But there's been another rumor we keep hearing again and again, this time about a sequel to The Lost World. The premise of this storyline follows a new Ice Age overtaking the world and how the dinosaurs let loose from Jurassic Park spread across the globe. While we here at CA feel that this too sounds just a bit too fanboy-ish for us to swallow without seeing some sort of proof, nevertheless, the rumor keeps coming back to our Inbox.
But there's yet another piece of gossip we feel we should share. While this scoop may not be linked to the other two rumors, it was first reported to us four days after Universal Pictures announced plans for a third Jurassic Park film. The scooper just mentioned a subtitle linked to the new project: 'Extinction'. [Submitted by 'Dennis_131'.]
Another scooper sent us this email hours after Universal made their press release. Please treat it, as as the rumor that appeared before it, as highly speculative! (We we mean is: we can't prove it's legit!)
"Thr truth of these rumors are entirely speculative but do to Godzilla this summer it looks like JP has some competition. The next and perhaps the final installment to the 'dino's eat free at the human buffet' will be called either 'the final rampage' or 'the final extinction'. The plot takes place long after the second in a scenario on the mainland. nature takes course through a storm or earthquake freeing the beasts onto the streets of an overpopulated city full of humans. The movie is said to be more for adults with more gore and fear and most of all dinos. ILM source states: 'There are supposed to be numerous stampedes through rush hour traffic and up to five t-rexs forming a family. one raptor shot in the sewer has as many as 139 lizards in a massive cave-like structure'. as far as the cast is concerned Jeff may be back with a list of other names in speculation: Ed Harris, Kevin Spacey, Chris O'Donnell, and Halle Berry to name a few. these sources are not confirmed truths but are as factual as possible." ['J-Rok' the digital anthropologist.]
August 18, 1998... We've been scooped that Director of Photography Dean Semler (Waterworld, Gone Fishin' and the upcoming The Bone Collector) will be attached to this project on August 17, 1999 -- one whole year from now. [Scooped by 'Leon the Milk Drinker'.]
September 24, 1998... Some info regarding Crichton's new book:
"My friend's first cousin works at Universal Studios, and therefore,
I've come across the following information:
Michael Chrichton is currently writing,
and almost done with a follow up novel (to the Lost World) called "Embryo".
Steven Spielberg is very interested in adapting this novel (possibly before
it's completed) into a screenplay, for which a treatment has already been
written, however he has no interest in directing it and would want to be
executive producer. The movie would either be called, "The Final
Rampage" or "The Final Return." I can tell you what i know
of the screenplay treatment. The film starts out in a totally destroyed
New York, where great chunks of buildings, like the Empire State Building,
lie on their sides, trampled over T-Rexes, the only visible life left,
who hunt after each other. We also glimpse other famous cities, in
the course of about 10 minutes, such as Paris, Chicago, London, and San
Francisco, who are also, seeminly, consisting of only dinasours.
The film then goes back to the 21st century to explain how this catastrophe,
or "triumph" occured. Apparently, during the T-Rex, who rampaged
through San Francisco, in the lost world, also managed to lay a few dozen
eggs. Unfortunately, these eggs were somehow mistaken for fossils
and placed in a museum. 2 years later, Dr. Alan Grant is visiting
the museum with his 2 kids from his first marraige. When he takes
them to see dinasour egg exibit, he realizes that 3 of the cracked-open
shells look less like fossils and more like recently hatched eggs.
A museum curator notes that there was an issue of a small family of lizards
living in the museum, a few years back, but that they no longer lived there.
Dr. Grant quickly informs Malcolm of the incident, and for a while, the
film goes into Dr. Grant's family issues. Later in the film, there
is a series of strange, horrible animal attacks in Yosemite, all of them
fatal.
When experts note that
the attacks look an awful lot like they were made by T-Rex's, Dr. Grant
and Malcolm head to Yosemite, along with a small military team, being that
nobody knows for sure these are dinasours. The rest of the film takes
place over a course of 2 days, where, in Yosemite they encounter 3 T-Rexes,
who kill a large majority of the crew, as well as some Yosemitee park vacationers.
In the end, the dinasours are dead. Of course, no one knows about
the other nine eggs, hatched in different museums. At the end of
the film, there is a shot of hundreds of other dinasours living in a
remote forest. [Scoop provided by 'Markk']