While it took us nearly fourteen years to get the fourth film in the beloved Jurassic Park franchise, the wait for the fifth one won't be anywhere near as long, thanks, in no small part, to the $1.67 billion dollar success of 2015's Jurassic World.
Following the film's blockbuster success, it didn't take long for Universal to greenlight a sequel, slating it for release on June 22, 2018, and it looks like they're finally ready to get the cameras rolling.
Yesterday, Bryce Dallas Howard, who plays Claire Dearing, posted a behind-the-scenes snapshot of her chair on-set with a caption that read "Day 1," which more or less confirms that they've begun working on the J.A. Bayona-directed sequel a little ahead of schedule, as it was previously reported to begin principal photography on February 27th. Filming is expected to take place in both Hawaii and London over the next few months, with the London leg of the schedule expected to begin first.
Additionally, a recent Instagram post from actor Josh Gad, who is currently filming Murder on the Orient Express, revealed that both Howard and Chris Pratt had already arrived in London earlier this week to begin work on the sequel, which likely means Pratt is taking a lengthy hiatus from Avengers: Infinity War. The duo was spotted sitting alongside sequel scribes Colin Trevorrow and Derek Connolly.
Check out the behind-the-scenes photos below:
This is the fifth film in the Jurassic Park (1993) franchise and the second film in the Jurassic World (2015) trilogy.
Jurassic World 2 will feature:
Director: J.A. Bayona
Chris Pratt as Owen Grady
Bryce Dallas Howard as Claire Dearing
B. D. Wong as Dr. Henry Wu
Toby Jones in an undisclosed role
Rafe Spall in an undisclosed role
Justice Smith in an undisclosed role
Daniella Pineda in an undisclosed role
Ted Levine in an undisclosed role
James Cromwell in an undisclosed role
Jurassic World 2 will roar into theaters June 22, 2018