As of 2000, the Jurassic Park franchise had generated over $5 billion in revenue, making it one of the highest-grossing media franchises of all time. So since we're all waiting for its 2021 release, Jurassic World: Dominion, what better way to kill time than taking a look at some of the lesser-known facts about the franchise.
From malfunctioning T. Rexes to incredible attention to detail, here's a list of eye-opening Jurassic Park trivia that reveals the production in a whole new light. So unleash your inner geek, continue scrolling, and enjoy!
(h/t ranker)
#1 T. Rex Occasionally Malfunctioned, Due To The Rain
"The T. Rex went into the heebie-jeebies sometimes. Scared the crap out of us. We'd be, like, eating lunch, and all of a sudden a T. rex would come alive. At first, we didn't know what was happening, and then we realized it was the rain. You'd hear people start screaming."
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158points
Dinosaurs have been stomping across our screens for decades, but they were often portrayed by stop-motion creatures that were so clearly artificial, they looked like cheap toys.
So when computer-generated dinosaurs came around, delivering something that was visually unprecedented, people were ready for it. Also, images of dinosaurs as slow, stupid, swamp-bound creatures still persisted into the early 1990s, and Jurassic Park eliminated these paleo-stereotypes and rapidly ushered in a fresh vision of dinosaurs that scientists knew well but that had not yet been fully embraced by others.
#2 Dennis Nedry From Jurassic Park Wearing Similar Outfits To Characters In The Goonies. Kathleen Kennedy Was The Producer On Both
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Some experts even think there may never be another dinosaur movie as important as Jurassic Park. Special effects, in their opinion, will continue to be fine-tuned, but the movies themselves aren't necessarily going to become something drastically different. If this is the case, good dinosaur movies will probably have to rely on solid storytelling.
#3 The Lost World Had An Intentional Godzilla Moment
The Japanese tourists running from the rampaging T. rex in the San Diego scene (an obvious homage to Godzilla movies) are saying, in Japanese, "I left Japan to get away from this?!"
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157points
Even scientists acknowledge its importance. "I think on balance Jurassic Park has been such a positive for paleontology. Of course, I could nitpick about the little inaccuracies but I think those are outweighed probably a million fold by the good that the movie has done," paleontologist Steve Brusatte told the BBC.
"I don't know if I would have a job now if Jurassic Park didn't exist."
#4 At The End Of Jurassic Park When The Remaining Crew Is About To Get Into The Heilcopter, The JP Logo Is Covered With Mud To Read "Your Ass Park". Condemning The Park In A Hilariously Brilliant Move
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155points
#5 In Jurassic Park When The T. Rex Comes Through The Glass Roof Of The Van In The First Attack, The Glass Was Not Meant To Break. It's No Wonder Those Kids' Screams Sounded So Genuine
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119points
#6 Ariana Richards Got The Part Of Lex In Jurassic Park Because Of Her Scream
To cast Hammond's granddaughter, Lex, Spielberg auditioned a number of girls and asked them to record their screams. Ariana Richards recalled that she won the role because she was the only one whose taped scream was loud enough to awaken a sleeping Kate Capshaw (Spielberg's wife) and send her scurrying down the hall to see if her children were all right.
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117points
#7 In “The Lost World: Jurassic Park”, The Random Citizen Who Gets Eaten By The T-Rex Is Named “Unlucky Bastard” In The Credits
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117points
#8 The Establishing Wide Shot Of The Dig Site In Jurassic Park III Was Actual Footage Of Jack Horner's Excavation, Filmed In Early Summer 2001. The Site Contained Several Large Fossils Of Tyrannosaurs And Some Hadrosaurs
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114points
#9 All Of The Cast Members Were Given A Raptor Model Signed By Steven Spielberg As A Gift Once The Film Had Wrapped
It looked very frightening, and Ariana Richards has it in her house to shock anyone coming in. "It's pretty big, maybe five feet long, maybe two feet high in a glass case," she said.
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114points
#10 Jack Horner Was So Vital To The Lost World, They Based A Character Off Of Not Just Him But Also On His Rival
Alan Grant, from the original Jurassic Park, was based on paleontologist Jack Horner (pictured), who both Michael Crichton and Steven Spielberg consulted about dinosaur behavior. For The Lost World, the character Robert Burke is based on rival paleontologist Robert Bakker, with whom Horner has a friendly feud.
Their major disagreement is over the behavior of Tyrannosaurus rex. Horner argues that T. Rex was a scavenger, while Bakker insists that T. Rex must have been a predator. Horner reportedly asked to have Burke eaten by the T. Rex in The Lost World. Bakker was apparently flattered, and wrote back to Horner, saying "I told you T. rex was a hunter!"
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112points
#11 In Jurassic Park (1993), The Insect Trapped In Amber (Copal) Is An Elephant Mosquito, The Only Mosquito That Doesn't Suck Blood; Therefore, It Couldn't Contain Any Dino DNA
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#12 The Crew Had To Have Safety Meetings About The T. Rex
The T.rex weighed 12,000 pounds and was extremely powerful. To alert the crew when the T. rex would come on, they used flashing lights because if someone stood next to it and the head went by at speed, it felt like a bus going by.
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104points
#13 The T-Rex In Jurassic World Is The Same T-Rex From Jurassic Park
We can see this from its scars on its neck where the velociraptors attacked it in Jurassic Park
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98points
#14 Steven Spielberg Wanted The Velociraptors To Be About 10 Feet Tall, Which Was Taller Than They Were Known To Be. However, During Filming, Paleontologists Uncovered 10-Foot-Tall Specimens Of Raptors Called Utahraptors
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94points
#15 In Jurassic Park, You Can See Dr. Wu Erasing A Data Sheet In The Lab
Erasing lab data is highly improper and unethical in scientific settings, hinting at Dr. Wu's corrupt nature in later films.
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92points
#16 In Jurassic Park III, Mr. Kirby Pees Upstream From Where Billy Is Drinking
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#17 The Spinosaurus In 'Jurassic Park III' Was The Largest Animatronic Ever Built
The Spinosaurus was the largest animatronic ever built. It weighed 12 tons and was operated by hydraulics, which allowed it to operate while completely submerged in water.
According to an interview with William H. Macy, the film's animatronic Spinosaurus had a 1,000-horsepower motor and could turn its head at twice the force of gravity, with the tip of its nose moving at a speed of more than 100 miles per hour.
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90points
#18 The Tyrannosaurus's Roars Were A Combination Of Dog, Penguin, Tiger, Alligator, And Elephant Sounds
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#19 In Jurassic Park, The Dinosaur Is Heard Through Roars And Most Memorably, A Plastic Cup Of Water, Which Vibrates As The Predator Stomps Along
To create the shot they fed a guitar string through the car, down to the ground, and then had a guy lay under the car and pluck the guitar string
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85points
#20 In Jurassic World The Jeep Used To Escape Was The Same Jeep That Brought People In Jurassic Park
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80points