Jurassic World 2 is continuing to add new names to its diverse, growing cast. Stars Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard are both set to reprise their respective roles from Jurassic World, and B.D. Wong is also rumored to return as Dr. Henry Wu. But other than that, the rest of the sequel’s cast will be mostly fresh blood.

The sequel has recently added a handful of young, up-and-coming TV stars to join the supporting cast, such as The Originals’ Daniella Pineda and The Get Down’s Justice Smith. They’ve been mixed in with some veteran names like Ted Levine, who is best known as Buffalo Bill from 1991’s The Silence of the Lambs, as well as Rafe Spall (Prometheus) and Toby Jones (Captain America: The Winter Soldier). A new report reveals that James Cromwell will be the latest veteran addition.

According to THR, Cromwell has agreed to join the cast of Jurassic World 2, immediately becoming the actor with the most experience of the entire cast. Character details for Cromwell were not disclosed, as they were not for other additions to the cast. Cromwell has been acting for over 50 years and won an Emmy for his performance on American Horror Story in 2013. He has appeared in dozens of various movie and TV roles, but is also known for his Oscar-nominated performance in Babe.

Cromwell joins the Jurassic World 2 cast just in time for the start of production, which reportedly kicked off on Tuesday. It’s unknown what role Cromwell will play in the story, but it will be far from his first action or sci-fi credit - he’s also appeared in Spider-Man 3, I, Robot, and Star Trek: First Contact. According to THR, the details of the plot are “being kept buried deep underground,” but some recent domain name purchases by NBCUniversal offered some hints at what to expect.

Cromwell has rarely been a leading man, but has long carved out a strong niche in Hollywood as a scene-stealing supporting actor. He often plays scholarly or bureaucratic types, often portraying doctors, politicians, or law enforcement officials. He’s even portrayed two U.S. presidents, George H.W. Bush in Oliver Stone’s W. and Lyndon B. Johnson in Flying Into Love. Whatever role he ends up playing in Jurassic World 2, it’s a safe bet that it will be a pivotal one and he will command the screen every time he appears.

Cromwell is a highly accomplished actor that adds a lot of prestige to the Jurassic World 2 cast, but he and the rest of the cast also can’t save the movie by themselves. The best cast in the world could not save a weak screenplay. But the story is being teased as more political-leaning and surprising than previous Jurassic Park franchise installments, so it certainly has a chance to be different from your typical monster movie. If the story itself is strong enough, Jurassic World 2 is in good hands with whatever character Cromwell ends up portraying.

Source: THR

  • Jurassic World 2 Release Date: 2018-06-22