Jurassic Park Star Weighs in on Whether the Franchise Could Pivot to a TV Series
Sam Neill isn't entirely sure the dinosaur franchise could sustain eight episodes.
The next chapter in the Jurassic Park franchise is set to be Jurassic World 4, which will be directed by Gareth Edwards, and while a number of major franchises have been able to expand into the TV realm, original Jurassic Park star Sam Neill isn't entirely sure the concept could sustain an entire season of live-action television. After having starred in 2022's Jurassic World Dominion, Neill has expressed how his time in the franchise has come to an end and, while he admits that he doesn't know what the plans currently are for the series, he personally sounds dismissive of the potential notion of developing a TV series.
"I have no idea about that at all. All I can tell you is for some reason, well for lots of reasons, the Jurassic franchise seems to have a lot of momentum, and there's new generations discovering it all the time. I mean, we made the first one 30 years ago or something, and kids love dinosaurs," Neill confessed to CinemaBlend about TV show opportunities. "I think it's a franchise ... It keeps being rediscovered. But whether it can sustain eight episodes, I have no idea."
It's worth noting, however, that while Neill is more familiar with the films he was directly involved in, the franchise has already earned a long-running TV show in the form of the animated Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous, which earned five seasons. The program unfolded during the timeline of the three Jurassic World films and didn't directly connect to the events of those movies, which allowed it more storytelling freedom. Last year, Netflix confirmed that the animated series Jurassic World: Chaos Theory would serve as a follow-up to Camp Cretaceous, with that sequel series potentially debuting later this year.
Reports of a live-action TV series emerged in 2020, though in 2022, franchise producer Frank Marshall refuted the idea of such a series being in development.
"No, I'm really just focused on the movies. So I haven't really thought about that. There's been no discussion of that," Marshall confirmed to /Film at the time. "As I say, we have the animated series [Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous]. I think that's plenty for now."
Jurassic World 4 is set to hit theaters on July 2, 2025.
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