With Jurassic World now only $9 million shy of becoming the third-highest grossing domestic release of all-time — a spot currently occupied by The Avengers — it was really only a matter of when, not if, a sequel would be announced.
That announcement was made official today, as The Hollywood Reporter states a sequel to Jurassic World will hit theaters on June 22, 2018. Stars Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard will return in their respective roles, while Jurassic World helmer Colin Trevorrow and co-writer Derek Connolly will take a first crack at the script.
The Hollywood Reporter notes Trevorrow isn’t expected to come back and direct the sequel — which we already knew — but will instead serve as a writer and an executive producer alongside Steven Spielberg. No word yet on the story, but I’m sure Trevorrow and Connolly will figure something out before that release date rolls around, no matter how thin.
Jurassic World has cleaned up at the box office at home and abroad, en route to becoming the third-highest grossing film of all-time at the worldwide box office. One has to wonder if its success was simply a case of everything lining up perfectly — what with such a long drought between installments and Pratt becoming a major box office draw seemingly overnight — but surely Universal will find a way to ride on the coattails of its shiny, newly-rebooted franchise and turn this upcoming sequel into a success as well.
