How the New T. Rex in JURASSIC WORLD REBIRTH Is Different From the Orignal
For over 30 years, the T. Rex we’ve known in the Jurassic Park franchise has been Rexy, the towering, thunderous icon of Isla Nublar who walked straight out of our dinosaur dreams and into movie history.
But with Jurassic World Rebirth, the filmmakers are rewriting the rulebook on what a Tyrannosaurus Rex can be, and it introduces us to a whole new T. Rex.
This new take on the king (or queen) of the dinosaurs is a fresh breed. According to Rebirth director Gareth Edwards (Godzilla, Rogue One), “The original Jurassic Park T. Rex is one actor. Now here’s another one.”
Edwards wants fans to see this new Rex like a different performer in the same franchise, Robert De Niro to Rexy’s Al Pacino.
So what sets her apart? The new T. Rex is described as “bigger, beefier, and even surlier” a meaner, more monstrous take on the Tyrannosaur than any version we’ve seen before. While its bulk and posture echo the 1997 Lost World Bull T. Rex toy from Kenner.
Edwards had another major influence in mind, the stop-motion beasts of The Valley of Gwangi, brought to life by animation legend Ray Harryhausen.
Unlike Rexy, whose design in Jurassic Park was rooted in paleo-accuracy thanks to artist Mark McCreery and paleontological input, this new Rex ditches the museum and heads straight into monster movie mythology.
Edwards explained: “We looked at some of the designs in Ray Harryhausen’s films, like The Valley of Gwangi. This new T. rex is kind of how, as a kid, I always thought a T. rex would look. I’m super happy with it.”
There’s even a nod to Jurassic Park’s literary roots. Writer David Koepp, who penned the original films and returned for Rebirth, revealed that the new film finally includes the infamous river-rafting T. Rex attack, which was lifted directly from Michael Crichton’s novel and scrapped from the 1993 film.
“Both Steven [Spielberg] and I said, ‘Hey, now we can do it,’” Koepp said. “When I was re-reading the novel, I told him, ‘Yeah, it’s as good as we remember. We have to have this.’”
In the film, “The planet’s ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived.
“The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind.”
The movie stars Scarlett Johansson as Zora Bennett, Jonathan Bailey as Dr. Henry Loomis, and Mahershala Ali as Duncan Kincaid.
The film is set five years after the events of Dominion, “in which dinosaurs mingled with humans all over the globe, these creatures are now dying out.
“The present-day planet proved to be inhospitable to the prehistoric ilk, except for a small region in the tropics around the equator, where many of them now congregate.
“The three most colossal dinosaurs of land, sea, and air within this biosphere hold genetic material precious to a pharmaceutical company that hopes to use the dino DNA to create a life-saving drug for humanity.”
Universal Pictures will release the Steven Spielberg-produced film in theaters on July 2, 2025.
Via: Empire Magazine