Fans were finally able to feast their eyes on the first trailer for Jurassic World: Dominion this past week, and it certainly managed to make an impression. The nearly three-minute preview was chock full of sweet footage, including the long-awaited return of the franchise’s original trio: Sam Neill, Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum. It was a visceral experience for the general public but, of course, it also meant a lot to the creative minds behind the trilogy capper. Screenwriter Emily Carmichael was among the many who watched the footage (which coincides with the Super Bowl), and she’s sharing the experience of seeing her story come to life.
Some may be quick to assume that because Emily Carmichael co-wrote the Jurassic World: Dominion screenplay with director Colin Trevorrow, she’s not quite as shocked or thrilled by the trailer as others are. But that couldn’t be further from the truth. Via his YouTube channel, Carmichael’s boyfriend, Erik Singer, captured her reaction to the new footage. As you might expect, writing and structuring the story is far different from actual seeing it play out in real time:
I understand! I understand the movie now! As the writer of the movie, so much of my experience of this project is the time and care that we put into the characters and the structure making the whole story hang together. And I think it’s easy to forget when you’re in that process, that the reason we do all of those things is just to create this sheer sense of total awe, and complete wonder.
Her sentiments here are totally understandable as, during the scripting process, screenwriters are focused on constructing a rich and narratively sound story. Sure, they’re thinking about what might entertain audiences, but they may not be envisioning exactly what the final product will look like during those early moments. For someone like Emily Carmichael, watching the footage has to be a very special experience. There’s probably an added sense of pride as well, considering that she’s also putting her personal stamp on one of the most iconic film series of all time. You can’t help but be happy for her, as she sees her ideas leap (or in the case of raptors, lunge) from the page.
The Pacific Rim: Uprising scribe wasn’t the only person to provide a response to the trailer, as many within the cast dropped their own thoughts on social media. Lead star Chris Pratt shared the trailer himself, and he ultimately received a cute response from his wife, Katherine Schwarzenegger. Though she didn’t seem to be so much focused on the dino-related action as she was on her hubby riding a horse on screen.
However, you better believe executive producer Steven Spielberg, who helped birth the franchise based on Michael Crichton’s novels, is emotionally invested in the movie. Ahead of the trailer’s release, Colin Trevorrow revealed that the director got “very emotional” when he first saw Laura Dern, Sam Neill and Jeff Goldblum reunite on screen for the first time. Trevorrow doesn’t even think the iconic filmmaker was prepared for how “moving” it would be to see their three characters back together.
As sentimental as the trailer is, there are still plenty of questions that need to be answered. I mean, how are jacked-up raptors in Europe and how do the dinosaurs even reproduce? Aside from in-movie queries, there’s also the matter of what lies ahead for the franchise after Dominion. Producer Frank Marshall recently spoke on the future, and his comments are enough to give fans hope. Of course, we probably shouldn’t get too ahead of ourselves at this point. Like Emily Carmichael, let’s just enjoy the ride leading up to the film’s release, and we’ll go from there.
Jurassic World: Dominion opens in theaters on June 10 and is one of the marquee 2022 film releases.