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Jurassic World Rebirth: The Big And Little Things That Make Up Zora

Director Gareth Edwards has revealed that the character of Zora Bennett was not gendered in the original script for Jurassic World Rebirth.

Jurassic World Rebirth isn't trying to step away from the legacy of the previous films completely, but it is trying to do its own thing, which is evident from the title. While the earlier films eventually brought in characters from the first film, they initially introduced us to a new cast of characters for us to try and get invested in. We have a new group of people we're meeting this time around, and one of them is Zora Bennett, the specialist brought in to help everyone get onto the island in the first place. This is one of those characters that seems pretty one-note from the first pitch, but star Scarlett Johansson and director Gareth Edwards worked together to make Zora something special. Johansson, specifically, really made the character her own. Johansson was recently interviewed by Entertainment Weekly, and she gave us the elevator pitch of who Zora is.

"Zora has had a long career in the military and in private security," Johansson explains over email. "She is someone who has dedicated her life to service and to helping people. She has experienced a lot of loss, yet she maintains a lot of positivity and humor, even when things are hard. I wanted her to have a lot of sparkle. She is someone everyone wants to hang out with. She is a good-hearted person and a loyal friend. Of course, David gave her a lot of gusto in his amazing writing. I just added my part to bring her to life."

Zora is another Hollywood Hero who was not gendered in the initial script for Jurassic World Rebirth, and everything shifted when Johansson was brought on. Edwards revealed, "There were your obvious names floating around, and then at one point, Steven said, 'Well, if we don't give it to Scarlett, she's going to kill me because she's been pursuing a Jurassic film for ages.' My eyes lit up." Johansson has said multiple times that this is the franchise she has been trying to hop on for years and years, so hearing that she was so excited that Steven Spielberg knew he would be in the hot seat if they passed her over again says a lot about her passion.

Edwards has an idea of who Zora could be compared to from the previous cast, but there isn't a one-to-one comparison. He also explained that there is this rich backstory he was sure would get cut, but it sounds like the scenes made it.

"Scarlett's character probably does share a little bit with Sam Neill in terms of the adventure side," Edwards remarks. "She's got this backstory. I don't want to ruin it for people, but I was half waiting for the studio to cut these scenes out. There were these very emotional, serious scenes between her and Mahershala in the movie that you don't necessarily expect. There's quite emotional stuff in the setting up with these characters. The hope is that you care about them without the dinosaurs."

While they are trying to do their own thing in Jurassic World Rebirth, that doesn't mean they aren't aware of past mistakes. There were a lot of snarky comments about what Johansson would be wearing in the film since the previous female lead in these films had to run around in kitten heels. He explained that while he wasn't entirely aware of that specific criticism going in, they did work extremely hard to make sure Zora's look was feminine and practical.

"I got made aware of that as you get made aware of all sorts of things when you're making a Jurassic film," Edwards said. "But no, I wasn't that aware of it, actually, going into it. … [Zora's costume avoids] the straight-off-the-shelf military equipment. A lot of the effort went into how to make it feel like a soldier in the movie, but in a way that still has some femininity to it."

Speaking as a woman with longer hair? They get approximately ten billion bonus points because her hair is in a ponytail with all of the fly-away pieces either clipped back or long enough to stay secure in said ponytail.

Jurassic World Rebirth: Summary, Cast List, Release Date

A new era is born.

Next summer, three years after the Jurassic World trilogy concluded, with each film surpassing $1 billion at the global box office, the enduring Jurassic series evolves in an ingenious new direction with Jurassic World Rebirth.

Anchored by iconic action superstar Scarlett Johansson, breakthrough talent Jonathan Bailey and two-time Oscar^® winner Mahershala Ali, this action-packed new chapter sees an intrepid team racing to secure DNA samples from the three most colossal creatures across land, sea and air. Also starring acclaimed international stars Rupert Friend and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, the film is directed by dynamic visualist Gareth Edwards (Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) from a script by original Jurassic Park screenwriter David Koepp.

Five years after the events of Jurassic World Dominion, the planet's ecology has proven largely inhospitable to dinosaurs. Those remaining exist in isolated equatorial environments with climates resembling the one in which they once thrived. The three most colossal creatures within that tropical biosphere hold the key to a drug that will bring miraculous life-saving benefits to humankind.

Academy Award^® nominee Johansson plays skilled covert operations expert Zora Bennett, contracted to lead a skilled team on a top-secret mission to secure genetic material from the world's three most massive dinosaurs. When Zora's operation intersects with a civilian family whose boating expedition was capsized by marauding aquatic dinos, they all find themselves stranded on an island where they come face-to-face with a sinister, shocking discovery that's been hidden from the world for decades.

Ali is Duncan Kincaid, Zora's most trusted team leader; Emmy nominee and Olivier Award winner Jonathan Bailey (Wicked, Bridgerton) plays paleontologist Dr. Henry Loomis; Emmy nominee Rupert Friend (Homeland, Obi-Wan Kenobi) appears as Big Pharma representative Martin Krebs and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo (The Lincoln Lawyer, Murder on the Orient Express) plays Reuben Delgado, the father of the shipwrecked civilian family.

The cast includes Luna Blaise (Manifest), David Iacono (The Summer I Turned Pretty) and Audrina Miranda (Lopez vs. Lopez) as Reuben's family. The film also features, as members of Zora and Krebs' crews, Philippine Velge (Station Eleven), Bechir Sylvain (BMF) and Ed Skrein (Deadpool).

Jurassic World Rebirth is directed by BAFTA winner Edwards from a script by Koepp (War of the Worlds), based on characters created by Michael Crichton. The film is produced by Oscar^® nominee Frank Marshall and Patrick Crowley, both longtime Jurassic franchise producers and of this summer's blockbuster, Twisters. The film is executive produced by Steven Spielberg, Denis L. Stewart and Jim Spencer. Jurassic World Rebirth will be released in theaters on July 2, 2025.

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