Here's Why Jurassic Park Fans Should Look Forward To The Jurassic World Dominion Extended Edition

"Jurassic World Dominion" is the action-packed conclusion to the "Jurassic World" trilogy, giving viewers an entirely new story that neatly wraps up a franchise that began almost 30 years ago. One aspect of the narrative that helps to distract from the movie's minefield of plotholes is the reliable chemistry of Dr. Alan Grant (Sam Neill), Dr. Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern), and Dr. Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum). Even though their storyline is largely separate from the antics of Claire Dearing (Bryce Dallas Howard), Owen Grady (Chris Pratt), and Kayla Watts (DeWanda Wise), seeing the original gang back together adds a whole new layer of excitement. Their arc is reminiscent of their adventures in the 1993 film, and Neill, Dern, and Goldblum step into their old roles as if no time has passed.

Now that the movie has been released, fans can look forward to checking out the forthcoming extended edition (via Twitter). It's not unusual for films to include special features when they're released on disc and streaming. However, the director of "Jurassic World Dominion" just gave fans some added incentive to check out the extended version.

While "Jurassic World Dominion" got a lukewarm response from critics, seeing Dr. Alan Grant, Dr. Ellie Sattler, and Dr. Ian Malcolm team up for the first time since the original film was undoubtedly satisfying. However, the filmmakers didn't want the reunion to feel like a cheap ploy to increase viewership. Instead of relying on the audience's sense of nostalgia, the minds behind the film wanted to reintroduce the characters in a manner that would be heartwarming but still make sense within the narrative. In a recent interview, director Colin Trevorrow explained his thought process about the characters' roles in the story and what the extended edition of the film has to offer longtime fans of the franchise.

"To me the challenge, and I think you can tell when you watch the movie, is to not make some kind of camera-winking version of this. I really wanted them to feel like real people in the real world — especially as people see the extended edition," Trevorrow revealed to Screen Rant. "I think they're even more real as characters, and I wanted it to feel like we were honoring them by sending them on a real adventure and honest adventure."

The same outlet reports that the extended edition will feature about 14 minutes of extra footage, including more scenes focusing on Malcolm, Sattler, and Grant.

Besides the epic dinosaur scenes and intriguing themes about nature's capacity to evolve, the original film's success is due in part to the charisma and intelligence of the characters who populated the story. Audiences were easily charmed by Grant's paleontological insights, Malcolm's chaotic theorizing, and Sattler's unflappable willingness to stick her arm in a pile of dinosaur dung. If "Jurassic World Dominion" is the final film in the franchise as intended, it's possible that our time with these characters has finally come to an end (via Screen Rant). Laura Dern, Sam Neill, and Jeff Goldblum recently sat down with Fandango All Access to discuss how it felt to return to the series. Evidently, their reunion was just as emotional behind the scenes as it was for viewers.

"I remember Colin [Trevorrow], you know, being in the direction of the scene and then saying it hit him that our characters were there, all together again and that he got moved," Dern explained in between interjections from Neill and Goldblum (via YouTube). "I texted Steven [Spielberg] a photograph of all of us together ... He got very emotional, he said ... So, it's a lovely family story."

Thankfully, it's not quite the end. Whether or not the "Jurassic Park" extended universe gets to live another day, fans will get the chance to see unseen footage of the beloved characters when the extended edition of "Jurassic World Dominion" comes out.