Sony just answered that question for us, whether we asked it or not.
Starring Kevin Hart, Dwayne Johnson (The Rock), and Jack Black, the announcement on Monday night closed Sony’s CinemaCon presentation in Las Vegas with the first ever trailer for Jumanji: Open World. The title is huge. The noise is huge. But seven years after The Next Level, the real question is if there is still anything to say.
It has almost ten years since 2017’s Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle premiered, and that film really was worth it. It was fresh. It was funny. It was self-aware. 2017’s film earned $962 million worldwide, and 2019’s The Next Level made $801 million. The numbers were indisputable, but the worry with a franchise that follows is what is there to chase that feeling? And Open World is already taking on some of that clumsiness.
Sony says, “this time the game comes to us, as Jumanji breaks free of its console, unleashing its chaos into our world.” Ostrich in city streets. Rhinos on the highway. Once again, we are experiencing a blurring of boundaries between a game world and reality. And this time the lead actors portray three different characters. That is a lot. Might be too much. Once a franchise starts piling on gimmicks, it usually means that there is little left to say.
OK, I’ll be fair. The cast actually seem like they’re in it for the fire. Jack Black told the CinemaCon clan “I’ve never had more fun working on a movie. This is my favorite so far,” while Hart basically said it was just “work.” That was always one of the franchise’s best traits, Black’s excitement vs. Hart’s sharper demeanor. It’s here, still.
And yes, there’s a very real and maybe under-appreciated hook under this. Dwayne Johnson told the CinemaCon crowd that one half of the original dice from the 1995 movie is going to be an Easter egg in every scene as a tribute to Robin Williams. He lifted a hand to the sky and said “Robin, this one’s for you.” It’s a nice gesture, and it’s probably the most compelling reason anyone should care about this movie at all.
Johnson has said this franchise or at least the portion with him will end on this third movie. If so, at least Open World has a reason to exist beyond profit. A send-off is a send-off. But if it hits the box office numbers on the previous two, Sony’s got other ways to keep the franchise going.
Jumanji: Open World is released Christmas Day, 2026. Whether it lands or just drops, we’ll know when.
