As we first reported on SFFGazette.com, Sony Pictures has unleashed a new trailer for Jumanji: Open World, revealing a fun, action-packed look at the final chapter of this trilogy (and likely the last Jumanji movie starring this cast).
In the sneak peek, we see Jumanji and the real world collide, unleashing prehistoric beasts and video game characters on Boston. Meanwhile, the stakes are particularly high as Spencer, his mom, kid cousin, and a colourful local find themselves inhabiting those familiar video game avatars.
This time, they need to complete the game and defeat the villain before time runs out, and the group will have to do so without any additional life bars. Overall, the movie looks like a lot of fun, and very much in line with its predecessors as enjoyable popcorn entertainment.
Released in 2017, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle was a critical and commercial hit, earning a 76% Rotten Tomatoes score and grossing $963 million worldwide against a $90 million budget.
2019's Jumanji: The Next Level received slightly less enthusiastic reviews, scoring 71% on Rotten Tomatoes, but remained a box office success with $802 million worldwide. Together, the two movies grossed more than $1.7 billion, cementing the franchise as one of Sony's most lucrative properties.
With a seven-year gap between that and this latest instalment, it remains to be seen whether audiences will show up for this third chapter. The odds are stacked against the movie, as it's opening a week after Avengers: Doomsday and Dune: Part Three, both of which will likely dominate the holiday box office. That could doom Jumanji: Open World, especially as Dwayne Johnson is no longer the box office draw he was in 2019.
"This Christmas, Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, and Karen Gillan are reunited in Jumanji: Open World, the hilarious final instalment of the globally beloved action-adventure trilogy," reads the synopsis. "Our heroes have escaped the perilous jungles of Jumanji before, but this time Jumanji breaks free of its console, unleashing its chaos into our world."
Jumanji: Open World stars Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Alex Wolff, Madison Iseman, Morgan Turner, Ser'Darius Blain, Rhys Darby, Nick Jonas, and Danny DeVito.
The movie is produced by Matt Tolmach, Jake Kasdan, Dwayne Johnson, Dany Garcia, and Hiram Garcia. Executive Producers are Barry Waldman, Melvin Mar, William Teitler, Ted Field, Mike Weber, Chris Van Allsburg, Jeff Pinkner, and Scott Rosenberg.
Directed by Jake Kasdan and written by Jake Kasdan & Jeff Pinkner & Scott Rosenberg, Jumanji: Open World opens in theaters this Christmas.