J.J. Abrams' Next Movie Is Quietly A Jurassic Park Reunion

Published Jul 16, 2026, 6:31 PM EDT Cathal Gunning has been writing about movies, television, culture, and politics online and in print since 2017. He worked as a Senior Editor in Adbusters Media Foundation from 2018-2019 and wrote for WhatCulture in early 2020. He has been a Senior Features Writer for ScreenRant since 2020. Although not a lot is known about Jenna Ortega and Glen Powell’s upcoming collaboration with director JJ Abrams, the movie will mark a secret Jurassic Park franchise reunion. JJ Abrams has been a pivotal figure in the entertainment industry for decades now, from reshaping the approach writers took to serialized TV with the success of Lost to rebooting both the Star Trek and Star Wars franchises in the late 00s and mid 2010s, respectively. However, despite his outsized influence, Abrams’ own track as a director is surprisingly spotty. His 2006 debut, Mission: Impossible III, was met with mostly positive reviews, and Abrams’ two theatrical Star Trek movies set the bar high for Paramount’s recently announced Star Trek movie. However, 2019’s Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker was a massive misfire, and one of many post-Rogue One Star Wars movies that made fans question the franchise’s future. As such, Abrams’ upcoming original sci-fi fantasy The Great Beyond has a lot to prove. Abrams’ first movie since Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker boasts a pair of massive A-list stars, with Glen Powell and Jenna Ortega in its lead roles. According to Variety, all that is known about the mysterious sci-fi movie is that its plot involves Ortega and Powell’s characters traveling to an alternative world, but this won’t be the first time that the duo has appeared in a sci-fi project together, thanks to their shared stint in Jurassic Park Camp Cretaceous. JJ Abrams' Next Movie Reunites Jurassic Park Camp Cretaceous Stars Jenna Ortega and Glen Powell Years before Powell got a TV show of his own with Hulu’s dark sports comedy Chad Powers, the star appeared in the animated Jurassic World spinoff Camp Cretaceous alongside Ortega. Set during the events of Jurassic World and its 2018 sequel Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, the story of Camp Cretaceous saw a group of seemingly lucky teens granted access to the inner workings of the titular theme park. No sooner have Ortega’s influencer Brooklyn, Sean Giambrone’s Ben, Raini Rodriguez’s Sammy, Paul-Mikél Williams’ Darius, and Kausar Mohammed’s Yaz been given a chance to see how Jurassic World works as part of a promo event than the kids find themselves trapped when the theme park’s attractions break loose and begin terrorizing the patrons. As the kids battle to survive the island, Powell appears as the supporting character Dave, an immature camp counselor who nonetheless does his best to help save the day. While both stars voiced characters in Jurassic Park Camp Cretaceous in 2020, Powell and Ortega’s respective star power has been magnified pretty considerably in the years since. Both actors enjoyed a breakout role that catapulted them into the A-list during 2022, with Powell stealing every scene he appeared in as Top Gun: Maverick’s lovably brash Hangman while Ortega played Tara, the heroine of Scream’s 2022 reboot. Not A Lot Is Known About JJ Abrams' Sci-Fi Movie Starring Jenna Ortega and Glen Powell Image courtesy of Everett Collection Although Ortega left the Scream franchise after Scream VI when her costar Melissa Barrera was fired, her Netflix series Wednesday had already cemented her as a massive star by 2023. Meanwhile, although Powell has weathered major box office disappointments like The Running Man and Devotion since Top Gun: Maverick’s $1.5 billion success, huge hits like Twisters and Anyone But You ensure he remains a major star. As such, even though not a lot is known about the plot of The Great Beyond, the movie boasts two of the few Hollywood stars who could get viewers into the cinema off the strength of their brand recognition alone. Before The Great Beyond’s 2027 release, Ortega has her Taika Waititi movie Klara and the Sun, an adaptation of author Kazuo Ishiguro’s 2021 novel of the same name, on the way. Meanwhile, Powell’s upcoming Judd Apatow movie The Comeback King will see the star play a country music star struggling with his waning fame alongside a buzzy cast including Madelyn Cline, Stavros Halkias, and Chris Fleming. While both these projects sound promising, reuniting the Jurassic Park franchise co-stars for the first time since Camp Cretaceous means JJ Abrams’ The Great Beyond is the pair's most exciting upcoming project. Release Date 2020 - 2022 Network Netflix Showrunner Scott Kreamer Cast Paul-Mikél Williams Darius Bowman (voice)