Besides his appearances as Nick Fury in the MCU and frequent collaborations with Quentin Tarantino, Samuel L. Jackson is also popular for getting some of the most bizarre on-screen deaths. From being blown in Django Unchained to being stabbed by a weaponized leg in Kingsman 2, and turning to dust in Avengers: Infinity War, Jackson has openly stated that he loves to die in his films.
However, when Samuel L. Jackson appeared in a minor role in Jurassic Park, his wish to get another memorable on-screen death went unfulfilled due to a unique reason, a hurricane.
While it cannot be explained why Jackson is so fond of getting memorable on-screen deaths, the actor’s Jurassic Park on-screen death was cut short after a hurricane struck the 1993 film’s production.
Why did Samuel L. Jackson get an off-screen death in Jurrasic Park?
Jurassic Park is a landmark cinema by Steven Spielberg that set a new standard in the department of CGI. The keen-eyed fans would remember that before helming the role of Nick Fury, Samuel L. Jackson played a minor role of Jurassic Park chief engineer, Ray Arnold.
While Ray Arnold was not very significant in the film, he is widely popular for his off-screen death. Ray Arnold undertook the responsibility of going alone to the maintenance shed and rebooting the systems of the park. Later when he fails to return, Laura Dern’s Dr. Ellie Satler decides to volunteer for the job and comes around Ray Arnold’s severed arm.
Speaking to the A.V. Club, Samuel L. Jackson shared that we were about to get another gruesome death scene in Jurassic Park. However, as a massive hurricane struck the production in Hawaii, Jackson could not reach there to film the scene and we were left with only a severed arm as Ray Arnold’s final appearance in the Spielberg blockbuster.
I was actually supposed to go to Hawaii, to shoot my death scene. But there was a hurricane that destroyed all the sets. So I didn’t get to go to Hawaii… All you see [in the movie] is the residue of my body, my arm. But yeah, I was supposed to be on set.
During the filming of Jurassic Park on the Hawaiian island of Kauai, Hurricane Iniki came as the most destructive storm and destroyed everything. Fortunately, the cast and the crew of the dinosaur flick survived and completed the remainder of the film after returning to Los Angeles.
Although we saw Samuel L. Jackson being ripped to shreds by two sharks in 1999’s Deep Blue Sea, it is sad we missed seeing his fateful encounter with the pre-historic creatures.
What do we know about the upcoming Jurassic World movie?
Following the conclusion of Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park trilogy, we got a Jurassic World trilogy focusing on a different story. Despite kicking off well, the latter trilogy failed to end on a positive note. Even after grossing over a billion dollars, the film was mercilessly bashed by the critics. But now, the makers are all set to take another take on the story with another trilogy.
Reportedly, the upcoming Jurassic era will start in 2025 with the release of Jurassic World 4. It will not feature any actors from the existing movie series. Instead, it is reported to feature an exciting new set of actors like Scarlett Johansson, Jonathan Bailey, Mahershala Ali, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo, Rupert Friend, and Luna Blaise (via Cinemablend).
Godzilla and Rogue One director Gareth Edwards is reported to helm the project. With the OG Jurassic Park writer David Koepp attached to pen the script, it will be interesting to see if it goes back to its roots and follows Michael Crichton’s 1990 novel, or takes an unpredictable new spin to the story.
Jurassic World 4 is slated to release soon on July 2, 2025, and Jurassic Park can be rented on Apple TV+.
