With casting fully underway, Deadline is now reporting that Jonathan Bailey (Bridgerton; Broadchurch; Wicked) is currently being eyed for one of the lead roles in Universal's next Jurassic World film, which will be helmed by Gareth Edwards (The Creator; Godzilla; Rogue One: A Star Wars Story).
He's set to join 2x Academy Award-nominee Scarlett Johansson (Black Widow; Avengers: Endgame), who is the only other confirmed cast member. However, both Dev Patel (Monkey Man; The Green Knight; Slumdog Millionaire) and Colman Domingo (Fear the Walking Dead; Rustin; Transformers: Rise of the Beats) have also been rumored to appear.
No further details are currently available on Bailey's role, but Universal is keen on working with the English actor again after being impressed by his upcoming performance in this winter's Wicked: Part One.
In addition to Edwards helming the feature, the screenplay will be penned by original Jurassic Park scribe David Koepp, with Frank Marshall producing and Steven Spielberg back onboard as an executive producer.
The next installment, which is rumored to be titled Jurassic City, is expected to take the franchise in a bold new direction, and will not return previous franchise headliners Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard, nor will it return the original Jurassic trio of Sam Neill, Laura Dern, and Jeff Goldblum, although we'd hope that's subject to change, especially since it's likely the new film will take place within the same continuity.
Jurassic World Dominion, which opened in Summer 2022, was a roaring success at the box office, grossing over 1.004 billion globally ($376.8M domestic; $625.1M foreign), so it's no surprise the studio wants to get one of its biggest franchises back on the big screen sooner than later.
Since the launch of the original Spielberg-directed masterpiece, the blockbuster film franchise has amassed over $6 billion at the global box office, including over $2.26 billion at the domestic box office, from six films - 1993's Jurassic Park, 1997's The Lost World: Jurassic Park, 2001'2 Jurassic Park III, 2015's Jurassic World, 2018's Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, and 2022's Jurassic World Dominion.
Bailey is likely best known for his role as Lord Anthony Bridgerton on Netflix's Bridgerton, but has also appeared in Broadchurch, Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan, Fellow Travelers, Doctor Who, and Leonardo. Ahead of the next installment in the Jurassic Park series, Bailey can be seen in Jon M. Chu's two-part Wicked: Part One this November and Wicked: Part Two next year.
Jurassic World 4 (a.k.a. Jurassic Park 7) hits theaters on July 2, 2025.