Back in January, Universal Pictures made a surprising announcement: not only did they have a new Jurassic World movie in development, but the screenplay – by original Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp, returning to the franchise for the first time since The Lost World: Jurassic Park – had already been written, and the movie was on the fast track to production. Soon after, we learned that it’s aiming for a July 2, 2025 theatrical release. Assembled in a mad scramble, the movie is now filming with Godzilla director Gareth Edwards at the helm… and Variety has revealed that Béchir Sylvain, who may be best known for his role as Roman on the BET+ series Diarra from Detroit, his role as Braithwaite on the Netflix series Black Summer, or his appearances on episodes of the Starz series BMF: Black Mafia Family, is in the cast. Details on the character Sylvain is playing in the Jurassic World sequel have not been revealed.

Variety has previously reported that Koepp’s script is a completely fresh take, launching a new Jurassic era, following three adults and three teens getting stuck on the Island. 

This new Jurassic World movie won’t be featuring any returning lead characters from the previous Jurassic Park / Jurassic World movies. The characters played by Sam Neill, Jeff Goldblum, and Laura Dern are out, as are the ones played by Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard. The new characters are set to be played by the likes of Sylvain, Mahershala Ali (Green Book), Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow), Rupert Friend (Anatomy of a Scandal),  Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton), and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (The Lincoln Lawyer) – all of whom had their roles directly offered to them. Luna Blaise (Manifest), on the other hand, had to (according to Deadline) “beat out a number of actors” to land her role. David Iacono of The Summer I Turned Pretty and child actress Audrina Miranda are also in the cast… along with a bunch of hungry dinosaurs.

Glen Powell (Top Gun: Maverick) was also offered a role, but he turned it down because he felt his presence in the movie wouldn’t help it. He did say that the script is great, though.

Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley are producing the film for Kennedy/Marshall. Steven Spielberg is executive producing through Amblin Entertainment. Universal’s executive vp of production development Sara Scott and creative executive Jacqueline Garell are overseeing the project for the studio. 

Are you looking forward to the new Jurassic World movie? What do you think of Béchir Sylvain joining the cast? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

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