Jurassic World: Dominion looks to pick up right where its predecessor, 2018's Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, left off. With the dinosaurs returning to civilized society, evolution has come full circle, and life, indeed, has found a way. But with new creatures establishing themselves on Earth, chaos is sure to follow. But the film's latest prologue also offers the chance for one iconic dinosaur to usher in a nod to an iconic DC Comics superhero.
The Easter egg can be found in the newly released prologue trailer for director Colin Trevorrow's film. The footage begins 65 million years ago, with a battle between a T-Rex and the Giganotosaurus, a newcomer to the series. The trailer then depicts this T-Rex losing to its opponent, similar to the Spinosaurus' victory in Jurassic Park III. However, the prologue quickly fast-forwards to the present day, for a new version of chaos.
Presumably set following the conclusion of Fallen Kingdom, the scene depicts the T-Rex running from wildlife officers. During the chase, the dinosaur terrorizes a drive-in theater before disappearing again into the woods. As she blends into her environment, seemingly lost to her pursuers, the helicopter's spotlight hits the screen, illuminating the film's logo like Batman's Bat-Signal.
The transition to the Jurassic World logo immediately after the T-Rex implies a heroic tone for the dinosaur. According to Trevorrow, this is a story beat that will also be explored in the new film. But the Bat-Signal-like logo has been a long time coming for the dinosaur that's equal parts hungry animal and agent of justice. This is first shown in Jurassic Park when she saves the survivors from the Velociraptors in the Discovery Center. However, in 1997's The Lost World: Jurassic Park, another member of her species offers his own brand of heroism. After rampaging across San Diego, the T-Rex takes his child's captor, new InGen CEO Peter Ludlow, to the lower decks to serve as food for the infant dinosaur. The act is framed as a form of natural justice for him kidnapping them.
The original T-Rex's return in 2015's Jurassic World brought with it a revival of her heroic nature as she helps Blue and the other survivors take on the Indominus Rex; she leaves only after the creature is taken away by the Mosasaurus. But as in The Lost World, this T-Rex gets to dish out justice in Fallen Kingdom: This time, after escaping captivity with the other dinosaurs (to say nothing of near-death by poisonous gas), she devours primary antagonist Eli Mills.
The Bat-Signal approach to the logo of Jurassic World: Dominion is a unique but fitting approach when paired with the T-Rex. While she is only an animal, she has demonstrated repeatedly that she isn't above helping, even if she may not realize that she has done so. In the past, she would have to be guided to the threats or simply stumbled upon them. But if the logo foreshadows her character having a more actively heroic role, fans of the character will be in for a treat.
Jurassic World: Dominion hits theaters June 10, 2022.