After two trilogies and a couple of animated series going back more than 30 years, the Jurassic franchise is still going strong, according to the first reviews of Jurassic World Rebirth. Directed by Gareth Edwards (Godzilla, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story), the latest feature stars Scarlett Johansson and Wicked’s Jonathan Bailey in a standalone story relatively detached from the past dinosaur-focused films, and while the reception is mixed, some are calling it the best and scariest of the brand since Steven Spielberg’s 1993 original.
Here’s what critics are saying about Jurassic World Rebirth:
Does it live up to expectations?
Longtime fans should have a blast.
— David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter
Jurassic World Rebirth brings a sense of classic blockbuster mentality back to a series that was in danger of driving itself far too off the edge with no acceptable return in sight.
— Peter Gray, The AU Review
Jurassic World Rebirth delivers roaring thrills and dino-sized action, proving the franchise still has bite 32 years after Jurassic Park.
— Danielle Solzman, Solzy at the Movies
It does prove that it’s still possible to tell a suspenseful and exciting stand-alone story within this franchise.
— Liz Shannon Miller, Consequence
For better or worse, it’s more of the same.
— Joey Magidson, Awards Radar
Rehashing Steven Spielberg’s creature feature in the most basic of ways fails to transport us back to the glory days of the original feature where we first experienced gob-smacking awe and wonder seeing these regenerated prehistoric creatures tower on screen.
— Courtney Howard, Fresh Fiction
Shallow and unnecessary, Jurassic World: Rebirth underwhelms on nearly every level.
— David Gonzalez, The Cinematic Reel
I was abnormally excited for this since I respect Edwards as a filmmaker and know he could do something original with this franchise. Instead, it smothered my inner 13-year-old in his sleep and then asked if I was having fun yet.
— Jared Rasic, Metro Times
Where does it rank in the franchise?
The best Jurassic film in years.
— Katie Smith-Wong, Flick Feast
The second-best Jurassic movie ever made. Admittedly, this isn’t as huge a compliment as it could be, given the movies that have preceded it.
— Liz Shannon Miller, Consequence
If fans decide to skip Jurassic World Rebirth, they would be missing out on some of the best set pieces since Jurassic Park.
— Ian Sandwell, Digital Spy
Its personality feels more in tune with the Jurassic Park films… It feels a little more grounded in its intentions compared to where the Jurassic World sequels went.
— Peter Gray, The AU Review
Rebirth is probably the best film in the series since The Lost World, but that doesn’t remotely make it a good movie.
— Jared Rasic, Metro Times
[It’s] an old-school adventure that leans closer in tone and scope to the original Jurassic Park films—particularly Jurassic Park III.
— Rohan Patel, ComicBookMovie.com
How you feel about the mutants, including the Distortus rex, will probably color whether this is one of the better sequels in the series or not.
— Joey Magidson, Awards Radar
Jurassic World Rebirth is unlikely to top anyone’s ranked franchise list.
— David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter
Jurassic World: Rebirth isn’t the worst chapter in the franchise, but it’s far from the fresh start it promises.
— David Gonzalez, The Cinematic Reel
Is it different from the other films?
Rather than continuing the franchise’s tradition… this movie dares to ask: what if mercenaries weren’t the worst human beings on the planet?
— Liz Shannon Miller, Consequence
It’s especially satisfying to get a woman in the role of the team’s toughest member, with no obligation to be anyone’s love interest.
— Peter Debruge, Variety
The first half of the picture… allows the franchise to hit the open sea for a change and unquestionably resembles [Jaws] for a long while.
— Pete Hammond, Deadline Hollywood Daily
It doesn’t do enough different from what the franchise is known for to really be too much better or worse than anything else.
— Joey Magidson, Awards Radar
What does it get right about the franchise?
Rebirth proves to be more successful by keeping that disaster-movie mentality in place… The story makes sure that enough goes wrong for the story to become a survival tale.
— Liz Shannon Miller, Consequence
[Screenwriter David Koepp] and filmmaker Gareth Evans understand how to prioritize the human characters over the imaginary threats… The movie offers an updated version of the same basic ride Spielberg offered 32 years earlier.
— Peter Debruge, Variety
Rebirth is at least seems aware of its redundancy.
— Richard Lawson, Vanity Fair
How is the script?
Koepp’s screenplay delivers heart and dark comedy to lift the doom and gloom of the characters’ predicament in Rebirth.
— Katie Smith-Wong, Flick Feast
While Koepp did not write Jurassic Park III, he had a hand in shaping the plotline. It’s predominantly the first and third installments that yield the abundant déjà vu moments in Rebirth.
— David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter
In a year where David Koepp delivered one of his strongest screenplays with Black Bag, his writing in Jurassic World: Rebirth feels noticeably undercooked.
— David Gonzalez, The Cinematic Reel
The return of the original screenwriter was one of the main reasons expectations were higher… and yet, what we get is a surprisingly shallow, hollow script.
— Manuel São Bento, FandomWire
What about Gareth Edwards as director?
Known for his sci-fi filmography and well-honed use of VFX, Edwards is a great candidate to helm this project.
— Katie Smith-Wong, Flick Feast
Director Gareth Edwards, no stranger to helming creature features, franchise titles and stories around technological mishaps, evokes the Spielberg spirit… blending moments of spectacle with surprising intimacy and emotion.
— Peter Gray, The AU Review
Gareth Edwards clearly knows how to stage suspenseful action, and many of these sequences successfully build a genuine sense of dread.
— David Gonzalez, The Cinematic Reel
Edwards’s knack for clean action stands out here — and for those who loved his use of flares in 2014’s Godzilla, don’t worry, there’s a real flare-a-palooza during the night sequences.
— Liz Shannon Miller, Consequence
Edwards clearly is a devoted Spielberg fan, embedding subtle homages throughout, notably in the open water sequences that recall Jaws.
— David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter
How does the movie look?
Shot (like Spielberg’s original) with Panavision cameras and anamorphic lenses on 35mm, the jungles of Thailand that stand in for the island offer spectacular visuals.
— David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter
Various set pieces make the most of David Vickery’s VFX to create something visually spectacular.
— Katie Smith-Wong, Flick Feast
Even when Jurassic World Rebirth fails, it does so with enough visual polish to never be outright bad.
— Manuel São Bento, FandomWire
How are the special effects?
The CG work on the creatures is first-rate, notably so in the scary climactic stretch when the lumbering D. Rex joins the fray.
— David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter
The real stars we come for are the dinos, and this current bunch are dino-myte (sorry, so sorry). Credit the effects wizards who worked overtime to deliver, and they do.
— Pete Hammond, Deadline Hollywood Daily
[It has] eye-dropping visual effects.
— Katie Smith-Wong, Flick Feast
The special effects, both practical and CG, do a great job of making this all register as if it’s happening.
— Aaron Neuwirth, We Live Entertainment
It’s great that Edwards can make a Mosasaur look tangible enough to touch as it glides under the surface of the ocean, but his film’s pencil-thin characters betray the reality of the CGI dinos chasing them.
— David Ehrlich, IndieWire
What about the dinosaur action?
If you’re here for dino thrills, the film delivers.
— Rohan Patel, ComicBookMovie.com
The strongest set piece in Jurassic World Rebirth involves a T-Rex and a raft, taken from the original Jurassic Park novel by Michael Crichton, which is incredibly tense, playful and gripping.
— Ian Sandwell, Digital Spy
The dinosaur action doesn’t disappoint. Koepp’s adaptation of the author’s hyper-intense river raft sequence is the show-stopping number.
— Courtney Howard, Fresh Fiction
Some of the dinosaur action sequences still awaken that childlike adrenaline rush that takes us back to the original wonder.
— Manuel São Bento, FandomWire
It would be disingenuous to suggest that Rebirth is totally deprived of tolerable setpieces and/or well-engineered thrills; the T-Rex cameo has some fun with an inflatable raft, while the Quetzalcoatlus sequence introduces a high-flying pinch of Indiana Jones into a movie so desperate to coast off Spielbergian magic that it doesn’t seem to care where it comes from.
— David Ehrlich, IndieWire
The new element here is the mutant monster dinosaurs, which is fine, though not done enough with.
— Joey Magidson, Awards Radar
Is it scary?
Edwards refreshes what made the franchise great with his own vision and the results bring an abundance of scares.
— Katie Smith-Wong, Flick Feast
Edwards and Koepp are careful to balance the scares with lightness, though, in classic Amblin fashion.
— Ian Sandwell, Digital Spy
Are there any dinos that stand out?
Although most of the dinos don’t hesitate to devour people, a herbivorous, puppy-sized Aquilops that Ella dubs “Dolores” is cute enough to adopt.
— Peter Debruge, Variety
Dolores — a puppy-like, animatronic creature known as an aquilops — is so Spielbergian it’s corny. But the sweetness is also disarming.
— David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter
The newly designed Tyrannosaurus also looks fantastic, offering a fresh yet faithful update to the franchise’s most iconic creature.
— Rohan Patel, ComicBookMovie.com
What about the new characters?
Well drawn, if clichéd.
— Pete Hammond, Deadline Hollywood Daily
The cast is excellent, but the characters are hollow.
— Manuel São Bento, FandomWire
If there’s a saving grace, it’s Jonathan Bailey and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo who stand out as the only characters that actually feel human than genetically engineered in a story lab.
— David Gonzalez, The Cinematic Reel
The new cast of Johansson, Ali, and Bailey are all likable, and they make for a strong lead trio, although the former two would have benefitted from more fleshed-out character backstories rather than the vague conversation we’re given.
— Rohan Patel, ComicBookMovie.com
Are there any major problems with the movie?
Before you get to the good stuff of Jurassic World Rebirth though, you have to get through the sluggish first act.
— Ian Sandwell, Digital Spy
Worst of all, the picture talks out of both sides of its mouth… The filmmakers falter in adding any depth surrounding the inhumane experiments on these frightening behemoths, coming up short in terms of animal and environmental advocacy.
— Courtney Howard, Fresh Fiction
The worldbuilding is ill-considered, which is a strange outcome for a logline as simple and exciting as “oops, we brought the dinosaurs back again!” Even the basic premise of mutated dino hybrids yields only a few minutes of screen time for exactly one slightly bizarre version of a creature we’ve seen before.
— Siddhant Adlakha, Inverse
The Delgado family, supposedly just out for a normal journey in their catamaran on the way to Capetown, is an unnecessary distraction and tends to stretch credibility (if it needed any more stretching) by slowing down the action and the main event to focus on their own family issues, rather than the task at hand.
— Pete Hammond, Deadline Hollywood Daily
Rebirth doesn’t do itself any favors by so frequently harkening back to the original… The extent to which this franchise is just fending off its own extinction has never been more obvious than it is in during the Rebirth sequence that pays homage to the kitchen encounter from the first movie.
— David Ehrlich, IndieWire
Will it make us excited for more Jurassic World?
Does Rebirth set up a promising new future for the franchise, as its title suggests? Not exactly — again, this feels very much like a stand-alone adventure.
— Liz Shannon Miller, Consequence
If this marks the end of the franchise, Jurassic World Rebirth is a satisfying conclusion—a thrilling blend of survival thriller, heist movie, creature feature, and heartfelt tribute to the Spielberg classics that started it all. If isn’t the end, I say bring on whatever story comes next in the franchise!
— Danielle Solzman, Solzy at the Movies
If there is to be an eighth installment, count me in.
— Pete Hammond, Deadline Hollywood Daily
It hardly feels essential to the series’ overall mythology, nor does it signal where the franchise could be headed.
— Peter Debruge, Variety
I wouldn’t be shocked to see further installments going forward, though I’d be lying if I said there was newfound excitement.
— Joey Magidson, Awards Radar
Jurassic World Rebirth opens in theaters on July 2, 2025.
