It may be longer yet until we see malevolent dinosaurs roam Isla Nubla again as production on Jurassic Park 4 has been shut down indefinitely. Yesterday, Digital Asset Manager Todd Smoyer and Concept Artist Dean Sherriff both took to Twitter to get the news out that Universal has stopped the JP train in its tracks with Smoyer going all drama queen and claiming,

 “Hollywood makes and crushes dreams. Goodbye JP4.”

 On the heels of these comments and the internet blowing up, Universal stepped forward and tried to reassure fans that while JP4 would no longer be hitting theaters in June 2014, it would still be waiting in the wings.

“In coordination with filmmakers, Universal has decided to release Jurassic Park 4 at a later date giving the studio and filmmakers adequate time to bring audiences the best possible version of the fourth installment in Universal’s beloved franchise. We could not be more excited about the vision that Colin Trevorrow has created for this film, and we look forward to watching as he and the producers create another great chapter in this franchise’s storied history.”

Although Universal seems to remaining optimistic, it’s likely that they are just trying to calm the storm for now. While pushing back the release date in order to give the special effects crew more time to work through this very FX driven film would seem like a reasonable move on the studios part, pulling the plug on the production entirely is never good news.

With Steven Spielberg producing and Colin Trevorrow (Safety Not Guaranteed) directing, JP4 was expected to take the franchise back to its roots and see the state of the island from the first film some-odd years later. Like the fate of the triceratops from the original Jurassic Park, this potentially promising production is now in the hands of something greater. At this point, we will see if that vision is ever realized.

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