‘Jurassic World’ Franchise May Use Generative AI To Create Its Dinosaurs in the Future

Few films have altered the landscape of visual effects quite like Jurassic Park.

When Steven Spielberg’s dinosaur thriller arrived in theaters in 1993, audiences witnessed something they had never seen before. Through a combination of practical animatronics from Stan Winston and revolutionary digital effects from Industrial Light & Magic, prehistoric animals appeared to walk, breathe, and hunt with astonishing realism.

More than three decades later, those dinosaurs remain the benchmark against which many visual effects sequences are measured. That legacy makes a new Hollywood debate particularly relevant to the franchise: the rise of generative artificial intelligence.

While AI has become one of the most divisive topics in entertainment, some filmmakers have embraced the technology as a tool capable of accelerating parts of the creative process. Among them is Jurassic World Rebirth director Gareth Edwards.

Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter during an appearance at AI on the Lot in Culver City, California, Edwards praised generative AI’s ability to assist with creative iteration, describing it as “a f**king genius at helping you.” He also suggested that the technology could eventually become more powerful than traditional CGI.

“I can’t see a reason why you wouldn’t become interested in this stuff as a filmmaker,” he said. “It’s so clearly a tool that might be up there with the camera. It’s going to be better than CGI. I’m excited, I hope you are.”

He later said that generative AI is more helpful with organizing ideas, testing concepts, and producing images as opposed to generating stories, saying, “It has no taste whatsoever. It is a f**king genius at helping you. I view it like having a second-unit director who is a billionaire on acid. Like, it’ll do anything you ask, not a problem. Sometimes it’ll [go] batsh*t crazy. And you’ll give it notes, and it’ll be like, ‘I don’t do notes. I’ll just do something totally different.’ But it’s worth it.”

“It’s only good for iteration and discovering what the movie should be,” he added, “and then once you know what it is, go in and start making it your movie.”

However, his comments immediately generated discussion online.

Related: Warner Bros. Officially Unveils Its Own ‘Jurassic Park’ Movie, Releases This Year

On X (formerly Twitter), some argued that filmmakers should be protecting artists rather than endorsing automation, while others countered that technological change has always been part of filmmaking’s evolution.

Importantly, Edwards did not suggest using AI to generate finished visual effects. His comments focused primarily on development and experimentation during the creative process. Even so, they naturally raise a question for one of Hollywood’s most effects-driven franchises: could artificial intelligence ever play a role in creating Jurassic dinosaurs? At present, the answer appears unlikely.

The Jurassic series has built its reputation on visual effects craftsmanship. From 1993’s Jurassic Park through last year’s Jurassic World Rebirth, the films have relied on teams of artists, animators, designers, and practical-effects specialists to bring their creatures to life.

Replacing that process with generative AI would almost certainly face resistance from both audiences and industry professionals.

That skepticism remains widespread throughout Hollywood. Concerns surrounding AI were among the issues discussed during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strikes, while many creatives continue to question how the technology should be used.

Spielberg himself has adopted a cautious position. While promoting his new film Disclosure Day, the filmmaker said he was not prepared to replace artists with AI, emphasizing that creativity involves something technology cannot replicate.

“Where I don’t love AI is where it takes a position, or there’s an empty chair at a writer’s table,” he said on the IMOpodcast (via Deadline). “There’s six writers, and there’s an empty chair, and there’s a computer in front of the empty chair, and it is the seventh writer. I’m not willing to substitute, because I don’t really believe in sentience. I don’t believe there is any substitute for the soul. I don’t think that is an algorithm that is inventible.”

Whether AI eventually becomes a larger part of blockbuster filmmaking remains to be seen. But if the technology ever finds its way into the Jurassic franchise, it will be entering a series whose reputation was built on convincing audiences that dinosaurs could be real.

Would you support the use of AI-generated dinosaurs in a future Jurassic film? Let us know in the comments below!