More than three decades after Jurassic Park first roared onto screens, screenwriter David Koepp has shed light on one of the film’s most significant departures from Michael Crichton’s original novel — the fate of John Hammond.
In Steven Spielberg’s 1993 blockbuster, Hammond, played by Richard Attenborough, escapes the island alongside his grandchildren. But in Crichton’s novel, Hammond meets a grisly end at the claws of a pack of Procompsognathus dinosaurs after injuring himself.
Koepp recently told Empire magazine that the change was made to avoid ending the film on too dark a note. “The novel’s a bit darker than the film,” he said. “We kinda like this guy; can’t he just learn his lesson?”
The Jurassic Park franchise has since evolved into a multi-billion-dollar saga, with the latest installment, Jurassic World: Rebirth, set to release in cinemas on July 2, 2025. Set five years after Jurassic World Dominion, the new film stars Scarlett Johansson, Jonathan Bailey, Mahershala Ali, and more, and is directed by Gareth Edwards.