James Cameron’s Jurassic Park Is An R-Rated Dream Come True
What if James Cameron directed Jurassic Park instead of Steven Spielberg? It’s a reality that almost happened, and although it would have undoubtedly still been a great movie, even Cameron is glad it never happened. Cameron told the Huffington Post in 2012 that he tried to get the rights to the movie, but Spielberg beat him to it, admitting, “But when I saw the film, I realized that I was not the right person to make the film, he was,” adding, “Because he made a dinosaur movie for kids, and mine would have been aliens with dinosaurs, and that wouldn’t have been fair.”
James Cameron’s Jurassic Park Would Be More Like The Novel
James Cameron makes a great point, as Jurassic Park is really the perfect movie for nearly all ages. Steven Spielberg is a master at making magic blockbusters that you can love when you’re a kid and watch again when you’re an adult and love just as much. Of course, Cameron is a blockbuster master, too, but it sounds like his version of the film would have been much more violent and R-rated than Spielberg’s.Interestingly, James Cameron’s vision for the movie actually would have aligned more with Michael Crichton’s Jurassic Park novel. In the novel, John Hammond is an outright villain who meets a gruesome end, and Ian Malcolm also dies. Steven Spielberg made some changes that ended up making the movie better.
A More Villanous Creator
Rather than being an outright villainous figure in Jurassic Park, Richard Attenborough’s John Hammond is a warm and starry-eyed visionary who cares about his grandchildren. However, his downfall is his hubris and attempt to play God with dinosaurs, which fits the book’s overarching theme even better while also making Hammond likable. Of course, Speilberg also made the very wise decision of keeping Ian Malcolm alive, especially since Malcolm was played by the endlessly charming Jeff Goldblum.
Tim Burton Wanted To Make The Film
James Cameron and Steven Spielberg weren’t even the only ones attempting to get the film rights to Michael Crichton’s Jurassic Park novel, as Tim Burton, Richard Donner, and Joe Dante were all bidding on it too. Those would have all been interesting projects for sure, but Spielberg was the right one for the job. Spielberg truly knew how to make movie magic, and he constructed numerous unforgettable scenes that may not have made the cut in a darker film.
Jurassic Park Is One Of The Most Successful Movies Ever, Thanks To Spielberg
The wonder of seeing the Brachiosaurus with John Williams’ score swelling in the background, the tension-filled T-Rex scene, the raptors in the kitchen, and so many more scenes are burned into the memories of anyone who has seen Jurassic Park. James Cameron would have undoubtedly made a great, action-packed, and entertaining film. But it wouldn’t be a film that kids could grow up watching.
Watch The Movie On Netflix
Jurassic Park was recently added to Netflix, so now is a great time to watch it or re-watch it for the first time. There’s really no bad time to watch Jurassic Park, as it’s easily one of the best films of all time. Sometimes, things just work out for the best, and the fact that Steven Spielberg ended up with the rights during a fierce bidding war is one of those times when the stars really aligned.
