Spanish director J.A. Bayona will direct Universal and Amblin Entertainment’s “Jurassic World’ sequel, the studio announced Monday.
Bayona, who made his name with 2007’s Spanish-language movie “The Orphanage” and the 2012 Naomi Watts survival drama “The Impossible,” has been generating major buzz for his next Project, Focus Features’ fantasy yarn “A Monster Calls” with Liam Neeson and Felicity Jones.
Steven Spielberg and Colin Trevorrow will executive produce the new “Jurassic” movie, which welcomes back lead actors Chris Pratt and Bryce Dallas Howard.
Producers Frank Marshall and Pat Crowley join Spielberg and Trevorrow, with Belen Atienza joining the team as a producer as well.
Trevorrow and Derek Connelly are writing the script. Universal announced the sequel, hitting theaters June 22, 2018, in July.
Trevorrow’s “Jurassic World” counts as the second highest-grossing opening weekend of all time, behind “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” both domestically and internationally.
The film has made $1.67 billion at the worldwide box office, passing “Marvel’s The Avengers” to become the fourth-highest-grossing movie in history.
Bayona is represented by CAA and attorney Warren Dern of Sloane, Offer Weber and Dern.